On a Wednesday evening in Benton Township, Michigan, 43-year-old Kenneth William Martin Jr. was walking with his fiancée, Cynthia Sorrels. The couple was on their way to the Ravines mobile home park from a friend's house on November 30, 2016, when their path was tragically interrupted. An individual approached them and demanded money, brandishing a 12-gauge shotgun at Martin.
Before he had a chance to react to the demand, he was shot in the chest.
The assailant fled the scene on foot, leaving Martin fatally wounded. Benton Township Police Department officers responded to a call about a shooting in the 1900 block of East Empire Avenue at approximately 9:19 p.m. and found Martin deceased at the scene. Sorrels was unharmed in the incident. An investigation was immediately launched, and detectives began to piece together the events of that night.
The day after the shooting, a 20-year-old Benton Township resident named Anthony Sanders was arrested in connection with the murder. During an interview with police, Sanders acknowledged his involvement in the homicide. He was subsequently lodged at the Berrien County Sheriff's Department. Sanders faced charges of open murder, armed robbery, and felony possession of a firearm for his role in the death of Kenneth Martin Jr.
