[citation needed] In 1977, then-still Susan Daniels met Kenneth Smith, a local dealer of methamphetamine, PCP, and cocaine.
[3] His aim was to arrest a 32-year-old ex-convict and bank robber, Carl Edward "Cat Eyes" Lockhart, who was a friend of Kenneth Smith.
[5] A local sheriff's deputy, Albert "Bert" Hartfield, recommended that his longtime friend Susan Smith visit Putnam to earn extra income and to help him with the case.
[3] Smith and Putnam began to have frequent contact for the exchange of information about Lockhart's upcoming criminal plans.
Putnam, however, was aware his behavior could damage his career and his family, and in early 1989, he signed a petition to be transferred from Kentucky to Florida, in order to focus on other cases.
[citation needed] On June 8, 1989, Putnam took Smith in his rental car to a clearing, and after a brief discussion and threats by both sides, they began to fight.
[citation needed] In 1990, the investigation into Smith's death became an FBI matter, as Putnam was under suspicion for her disappearance.
He subsequently confessed, pleaded guilty to accidentally strangling Smith,[4][2] and told authorities where to find her body.