Published • loading... • Updated
Former Broadway child actress Imani Dia Smith dies at 25
- On Dec. 21, Imani Dia Smith, 25, was found with stab wounds in Edison, New Jersey, and later pronounced dead at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick; her boyfriend Jordan D. Jackson-Small, 35, was charged in connection with her death.
- Middlesex County prosecutors said the preliminary probe found the incident was not random and Jordan D. Jackson-Small, 35, pleaded guilty in June 2024 to aggravated assault from a Dec. 21, 2023, domestic incident.
- Police answered a 911 call and discovered Smith with stab wounds at her Grove Avenue residence, then transported her to the hospital; Jackson-Small faces first-degree murder and multiple related weapon and child-welfare charges.
- Kira Helper launched a GoFundMe to cover funeral, therapy, cleanup and care costs, raising more than $46,000 from 609 donations toward a $55,000 goal to support Monique Rance-Helper, Rawni Helper, and Imani's 3-year-old son.
- Aunt Kira Helper wrote `She leaves behind a 3-year-old son, her parents, her two younger siblings, and an extended family, friends, and community who loved her so very much`. Family and community described Imani Dia Smith as a triple-threat who notably played Young Nala on Broadway.
Insights by Ground AI
20 Articles
20 Articles
Former Broadway child star allegedly killed by boyfriend in NJ ‘had her whole life ahead of her’: family
Imani Smith, 26 — who played Young Nala in the hit musical "The Lion King" between 2011 and 2012 — was senselessly butchered by beau Jordan D Jackson Small on Sunday, Middlesex County authorities and her kin said.
·New York, United States
Read Full ArticleFormer 'The Lion King' child actress dies at 25, boyfriend charged with murder
Imani Dia Smith, who starred as Young Nala in the Broadway production of "The Lion King," is survived by a 3-year-old son.GoFundMe Imani Dia SmithImani Dia Smith, who starred as Young Nala in the Broadway production of The Lion King as a child, has died at the age of 25.Authorities were dispatched to her Edison, N.J., residence on the morning of Dec. 21 after a call reporting a stabbing, according to a press release issued by prosecutors on Dec.…
·United States
Read Full ArticleCoverage Details
Total News Sources20
Leaning Left6Leaning Right2Center8Last UpdatedBias Distribution50% Center
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources are Center
50% Center
L 38%
C 50%
12%
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium

















