A Lithia Springs teenager was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday after admitting to killing one teenage boy and robbing another.
Myliek Ryshiem Dunn, 17, pleaded guilty to murder in the death of Namir Kelly, a 16-year-old South Cobb High School student killed at an Austell apartment complex in May 2019. As part of his plea, Dunn also admitted to robbing a 14-year-old boy and beating him with a metal pipe the month before the deadly shooting.
Prosecutors said both crimes were the result of gang violence. Dunn is a known member of the gang known as RKN, or Rich Kid Nation, which has ties to the national gang Rolling 60′s Neighborhood Crips, according to Cobb District Attorney Flynn Broady’s office.
Kelly died May 11, 2019, after planning to fight Dunn at the Chroma Park Apartments on Mesa Valley Way. Kelly was backed up by his friends, and Dunn brought along his own, agency spokeswoman Kim Isaza said in a news release.
“Multiple witnesses told police that Dunn, whom they knew as ’10-40,’ and Kelly were exchanging words when Dunn pulled out a revolver and shot Kelly once in the chest,” Isaza said. “Dunn fled on foot, but was chased by several of Kelly’s friends.”
Dunn was arrested three days later. He was 15 at the time.
According to prosecutors, investigators also found evidence on Dunn’s Instagram page of a robbery that took place in April 2019. Members of the RKN gang wore blue bandannas on their wrist when they held a 14-year-old boy at gunpoint on the East-West Connector and robbed him of his cellphone, ring and $50 cash, police said in an arrest warrant.
They also used a metal pipe to beat the boy on his lower back and legs, according to the warrant.
“On Instagram, Dunn and others were taunting that victim afterward, telling him what he needed to do to get his property back,” Isaza said. “That teen was then interviewed and told investigators that some of the people who robbed him referred to another robber as ’10-40.’”
He also identified Dunn in a lineup, she said.
Dunn was sentenced to life for Kelly’s murder, with 20 years to serve in confinement for the robbery. Other charges related to gang violence and aggravated assault were dropped as a result of the plea.
During Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, Kelly’s mother told the court she had forgiven Dunn despite her grief.
“Nothing good comes out of senseless violence,” Paul Camarillo, the senior assistant district attorney who prosecuted the case, said in a statement. “A child is dead. Another will spend prime decades of his life in prison.
“The DA’s Office is committed to doing all we can to motivate young people to choose a path away from gangs and violence, but we will absolutely hold gang members accountable for any violent crime they commit in Cobb County.”
Dunn may still have another day in court. He has been indicted on charges of rape, child molestation and false imprisonment in connection with a 2017 incident involving an 11-year-old girl, court records show. Those charges, which were brought in February 2020, are still pending, Isaza said Thursday.
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