December 22, 2023
On Wednesday, December 20, 2023, Chiquita Roberts, 41, was charged with Aggravated Death by Delivery in connection with the November death of a Crittenden County jail inmate. Roberts was already in custody at the Crittenden County Detention Center.
In November, the Crittenden County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) requested assistance from ASP’s Criminal Investigation Division (CID) regarding an in-custody death that occurred in the Crittenden County Detention Center on November 2, 2023. Shalanda Hurd, 40, was found dead in her cell at approximately 6:15 p.m. The victim had been incarcerated since February 8, 2023, on charges of Criminal Trespassing.
After conducting numerous interviews and reviewing security camera footage, CID was able to identify Roberts as the suspect. Roberts was seen sliding something under Hurd’s cell door before she was found dead. The Arkansas State Crime Lab determined Hurd’s cause of death was Acute Fentanyl and Cocaine Toxicity.