"America's Most Wanted" will declare the Ronni Chasen case closed in a special report Saturday about the crime, which police say they solved with the help of an anonymous tipster to the show.
Police went to talk with Harold Martin Smith after a caller to the show said they should investigate his role in Chasen's Nov. 16 murder. Smith shot himself with a gun that police announced Thursday was the same one that killed Chasen. They said they believed Smith acted alone.
The Fox show, which claims a role in more than 1,100 captures since its debut in 1988, was already planning a report on the ballistics testing in the Chasen investigation for Saturday. But since the testing linked Smith to the murder, it will now declare the case resolved.
“I’m very proud that this loyal AMW viewer had the guts to call our hotline to help solve this case,” said "AMW" host John Walsh in a statement. “After 23 years on the air, it reconfirms my belief that an average person can make a difference. It’s my hope that the Chasen family will now have some answers.”
Chasen was shot in Beverly Hills while driving home from the "Burlesque" premiere. The Fox series profiled the case on its November 20 broadcast.
The tipster's name and details of how he or she linked Smith to the crime have not been released, but the tipster could soon receive up to $125,000 in reward money, The Palm Springs International Film Festival, which Chasen worked with for many years, offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to her killer's conviction, and publicist Michael Levine started a fund aiming to raise $25,000 in reward money.
