Menifee Man Charged With Murder, Held on $1 Million Bail

A Menifee man accused of murdering local resident and world-record shoe collector Darlene Flynn was charged with murder Thursday.

Justin Charles Smith did not enter a plea during his appearance in Riverside Superior Court, where his arraignment was set for Aug. 8. He is being held on $1 million bail.

Flynn, shown here in a photo from her Facebook page, has been featured in the TLC series "My Crazy Obsession" and is in the Guinness Book of World Records for her collection of more than 15,000 shoes and shoe-related items. She was found dead in her backyard pool in the 28000 block of Stone Lane in Menifee Monday afternoon. Smith, identified as her ex-boyfriend, was arrested after being seen running from the property when police arrived.

According to court records, Flynn, 58 and Smith, 29, had a stormy past. In May of 2012, Smith was convicted of grand theft. Flynn was listed as the victim. In the summary probation report, Smith was ordered to have no negative contact with Flynn. Court records show a total of eight cases involving Smith.