On the morning of April 13, 2011, Demetry Smirnov took Jitka Vesel’s life. Demetry had been stalking Jitka for some time using a GPS tracking device that he placed on her car. By studying Jitka’s every move using the Internet and GPS tracking data, Demetry was able to pinpoint her exaction location on the day of the murder.

For a few months during 2009, the Jitka and Demetry dated. Then, Jitka left Demetry for another man. This caused Demetry to pine for Jitka for nearly three years. Attempting attacks before, Jitka repeatedly phone her local police department for fear that Demetry would attempt to hurt her.

Demetry followed through with his earlier threats by shooting Jitka eleven times. Jitka’s body was found inside of her car in an Oakbrook Illinois parking lot. Smirnov is currently being held without bail. He is expected to receive life imprisonment with no hope of parole. Demetry Smirnov’s sentence will be handed down on May 9, 2011.

Jitka Vesel’s friends and family members are upset and angry that the police did nothing to ward of Demetry’s attempted attacks. As was the case at the time when Demetry attached a GPS tracker to Jitka’s car, tracking an individual is illegal. While GPS technology is often used to help people, any kind of technology that is placed in the wrong hands can be dangerous.

Article Written by Harriette Halepis