A woman accused in the 2009 death of a Georgia mother after an illegal silicone injection eluded authorities for 17 years—until she asked officials to renew a driver’s license obtained under a stolen identity, investigators said.
Tamaira Angell Smith, 52, is charged with felony murder in the death of Eyanna Moore, 29, of Loganville. She was extradited from Texas to Georgia and is being held at the Gwinnett County Jail.
According to a Gwinnett County criminal arrest warrant, Smith injected silicone into Moore’s left buttock inside a Holiday Inn Express room near Stone Mountain on May 30, 2009.
Moore died the next day.
Eyanna Moore is pictured with her family. (Courtesy of Yolanda Hammond)
Yolanda Hammond, Moore’s maternal aunt, told News Outlet that her niece researched the procedure and the people offering it before moving forward. Hammond said Smith and another woman claimed to be sisters, with one posing as a doctor and Smith presenting herself as a physician assistant.
“Eyanna did extensive research,” Hammond said. “The website checked out, they had reviews, but we later found out there was an actual cosmetic location except for they were not the real people.”
“They used someone else’s credentials to pose themselves as those people.”
After the injection, Hammond said, Smith called Moore’s husband, David, and told him to bring yogurt and Gatorade to the hotel. When he arrived, he found Moore in distress and called 911.
Hammond said Smith later contacted David to ask about Moore’s condition. He told her that Moore had died.
Tamaira Angell Smith was charged in Eyanna Moore’s death. (Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office)
“He said she [Smith] was screaming ‘no,’ and hung up the phone,” Hammond said. “Nobody never heard from her again.”
Gwinnett police obtained an arrest warrant in June 2009, initially accusing Smith of practicing medicine without a license. By the time a felony murder warrant was issued months later, Smith had already disappeared.
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Driver’s license renewal leads to an arrest
In November 2018, Smith secured a South Carolina driver’s license using the stolen identity of another woman, according to a Sept. 25 news release from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, or SLED.
In July 2026, she contacted the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles after an alert blocked her from renewing the license online.
SLED assigned the identity-theft investigation to Special Agent Shawn Ludwig in August. Using facial-recognition technology, Ludwig identified Smith and discovered the outstanding murder warrant.
Renée Wunderlich, SLED’s director of public information, told News Outlet that Ludwig and Senior Special Agent Bridgette Lott collaborated on the case. Investigators uncovered another alias Smith had used in McKinney, Texas, and provided local police with information about her vehicle.
McKinney officers found Smith’s vehicle and arrested her in August.
Hammond said she was shocked by the unusual chain of events that led investigators to Smith.
“You ran for 17 years and then you call and ask for help under an alias, like really?” she said.
A bond hearing has been set for Smith on Oct. 22 at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center. News Outlet reached out to her attorney.
Tamaira Angell Smith is in the custody of the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office. (Google Maps)
Moore’s family hopes for justice
Moore’s death left her four children — Tatiyanna, Faith, Fantasia and Tristan — to grow up without their mother. Two of the children were so young that they have no recollection of Moore. Now, the family plans to attend court hearings and hopes for justice.
“She was always advancing herself for a better career for herself and her family,” Hammond added. “She’s 29 years old and she had a full life ahead of her…well educated young woman, married with children, and she just didn’t deserve that.”
Hammond now hopes Moore’s death will raise awareness of illegal silicone injections and help other families avoid the loss hers has endured.
“The thing that I would like for the world to know is just, you know, make sure you do your due diligence vetting these people. Make sure that you check the credentials.”
“No alteration of your body is worth you losing your life.”
