In the late afternoon of May 30, 2021, a coordinated and targeted assault at the Legacy at Country Club Apartments in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, ended the life of 23-year-old Kornei Kelvontae Mills, a Black/African American male. Responding to reports of a shooting at approximately 3:00 p.m., Tuscaloosa Police Officers and investigators from the Violent Crimes Unit discovered Mills suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
Despite the efforts of medical personnel to render aid, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Surveillance footage from the apartment complex captured a group of individuals walking toward Mills' apartment just moments before the fatal encounter. One person in the group was visibly armed with a long gun. As the group approached, Mills fled his apartment and attempted to hide behind a fence. He was discovered by his assailants, and a man in a red shirt reportedly opened fire. After being struck, Mills ran a short distance before collapsing. The shooter then approached the wounded man and shot him again as he lay on the ground. Witnesses reported that the entire group of attackers fled the scene in multiple vehicles following the shooting.
The investigation into the death of Kornei Mills quickly led to the identification and arrest of several suspects. Nelson Beville Jr., 20, was taken into custody the day after the shooting and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Charles Deandre Newton Jr., 25, was identified as the shooter in the red shirt and was arrested and charged with murder. A third individual, 22-year-old Chakyla Deambri Scarbrough, was also arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Investigators believe Scarbrough was recorded on video identifying Mills' apartment.
The motive for the killing was determined to be connected to the fatal shooting of Lorenzo Graham, which had occurred a day earlier in Snow Hinton Park. Graham was a close friend of Newton and his sister, Chakyla Scarbrough, while Mills was reportedly a close friend of Graham's suspected killer. Although initially charged with murder, a jury found Charles Deandre Newton Jr. guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, and he was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Chakyla Deambri Scarbrough was sentenced in 2023 to serve consecutive sentences of five years for manslaughter and two years for second-degree assault. The investigation remained active, with authorities indicating that more individuals could potentially be charged in connection with the case.
