GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — More than a year after three people were left dead after separate incidents in the same Grand Rapids neighborhood, police have announced charges against multiple people in connection to the final homicide case.
Chief Eric Winstrom announced five people are believed to have been directly involved in the killing of Darryl Yaber. Among the suspects is Dominike Sterling, the brother of Samuel Sterling, who died April 17, 2024 after being hit by an SUV driven by a Michigan State Police Sergeant.
Both Sterling brothers were among a group of five people who conspired to take Yaber's life, according to Winstrom.
The 32-year-old was found dead on Horton Avenue just south of Burton Street on November 6, 2023.
The shooting that took Yaber's life came just as a FOX 17 crew in the area was standing by to report on two bodies dumped in the streets of the same neighborhood that morning. 20-year-old Anayia Rodriguez and 19-year-old Malik Eubanks were both killed by gunshot.
Grand Rapids
3 victims ID'd in complex Burton Heights murder investigation
Eubanks' toddler son was found about a mile away covered in blood.
19-year-old Casey Harmon Jr. was charged in the pair's deaths last October.
Dominike Sterling is accused of carrying out the shooting of Yaber. Police say he is currently on parole with prior convictions that legally prevent him from possessing any firearms.
The other suspect named Tuesday was Tyriq Bettison. Investigators say Bettison was riding with Yaber's vehicle, feeding updates to the Sterling brothers on their location throughout the afternoon.
When Yaber parked his vehicle on Horton Avenue, Dominike drove his vehicle to the same spot, got out, and shot Yaber multiple times, according to notes from detectives. Bettison ran off while the Sterlings and a third, unnamed suspect took off in their own vehicle.
Both Sterling and Bettison face first degree murder charges along with conspiracy to commit murder. Police did not name the other suspects believed to be involved in the case, nor any charges they might face.
Grand Rapids investigators had information potentially tying Samuel Sterling to the killing at the time of Sterling's death, but the federal task force tracking the 25-year-old was not aware of that connection last April, according to Chief Winstrom.
"The Sterling's name came about very early on in in this investigation," said Winstrom.
Samuel Sterling's death led to a second degree murder charge against now-retired Sergeant Brian Keely. The case against Keely has since been moved to federal court.
Winstrom credited tips from the community, including surveillance camera and cell phone videos from the neighborhood.
"The silent observer tips, which have been have been key to getting us going on a lot of these murders, and they're very helpful," said Winstrom. "But oftentimes what's what happens is, when we put that call out, we'll just get phone calls of, hey, Tyriq was involved, and that's all we have to work on. So it's nothing really that we can act upon until there's actually information to corroborate to move forward."
The real struggle for investigators was hesitation by people who had information on the shooting.
"It seemed like a lot of people in the city of Grand Rapids knew who was responsible for this," said Winstrom. "It was just who was willing to come forward, knowing that there are individuals like this that are willing to pull the trigger for petty grievances out there, potentially you could take revenge, or potentially who could target violence against somebody coming forward. So it's a struggle that we face, not only in this murder, but but others."
Tuesday's announcement is a step to fulfilling a promise Winstrom made to neighbors more than a year ago.
"We don't forget and if there's any work to be done, we keep on moving forward," said Winstrom. "And even in those cases where we think we've exhausted everything, we're continually looking back and saying, Is there something else we can do now, is there some technology that's changed? Is there some new witness that can come forward? So this was the case, case of just persistence the other individuals involved."
If convicted, both Sterling and Bettison would face life in prison.
Watch the full press conference announcing the charges below
Follow FOX 17: Facebook - X (formerly Twitter) - Instagram - YouTube
