Witnesses said the crew came with handguns and shotguns, dressed in black. The men stormed the Stone Mountain apartment and tied up a couple who'd been in bed.
Then Vanessa “Honey” Malone, 18 and baby-faced, walked in and screamed. Gunshots rang.
The teen died there at Hampton Village Apartments that day, Oct. 23, 2012.
Four years later, her family is pleading for someone to come forward to help DeKalb police solve the case.
“We want to know who did it and why they did it,” older sister Cassaundra Kennedy told Channel 2 Action News recently.
Police have said Malone was apparently gunned down as she interrupted the robbery crew of three to six unknown men. The perpetrators had stolen one of the surviving victim’s wallets, according to a previous report.
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The woman, who’d been tied up along with the man, told police she heard the assailants take Malone to the back of the apartment after the shots. The couple waiting for several minutes before untying themselves and calling police, she said.
The family spoke with the news station around Christmas. The holiday has been corrupted for them.
"I don't celebrate at all. I don't buy gifts. I don't put up a tree," Malone's mother, Flora Malone, said.
Anyone with information can contact CrimeStoppers at 404-577-8577.
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