Murphy A Sampson County man has been sentenced to at least 25 years in prison for the murder of another man outside a McDonald’s in Duplin County in early 2020.
Antonio Jerome Murphy, 29, of Clinton, pleaded guilty Thursday in Duplin County Superior Court to second-degree murder, attempted armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury.
Murphy was sentenced to a minimum active sentence of 300 months (25 years) and a maximum of 372 months (31 years) for second degree murder. The remaining sentences are to run concurrently with the sentence for the homicide. Judge Henry L. Stevens, IV handed down the sentence on Murphy.
The state’s evidence showed that around 8:30 p.m. Feb. 6, 2020, the Beulaville Police Department responded to a shooting in the McDonald’s parking lot on West Main Street, Beulaville. They found Randy Anthony Rolla Jr., 19, of Greenville, and Michael Deangelo Bryant Jr., then 21, of Maysville, had been shot. Both were transported by EMS to Vidant in Kenansville.
Rolla suffered two gunshot wounds, one to the head and another to the torso. Due to the extent of his injuries, Rolla was transported from Vidant Hospital in Kenansville to Vidant Hospital in Greenville, where he was pronounced dead. Bryant Jr. was treated for a gunshot wound to the back, which fractured his shoulder blade.
Former Beulaville Police Department Chief J.G. Rogers requested full assistance from the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) to investigate the homicide.
District Attorney Ernie Lee said the investigation revealed that Murphy and the victims, Rolla and Bryant, who did not know each other, agreed to meet at the McDonald’s in Beulaville “for a transaction.” None of the individuals were from Duplin County.
“When the parties arrived in Beulaville, the defendant and another individual got in the back seats of the vehicle in which the victims were sitting,” Lee stated, going over the details of the case. “The two individuals produced handguns, held them to the backs of the victims and attempted to rob Bryant and Rolla. Bryant reached for his gun and the two individuals in the back seats then opened fire on the victims, striking them both. The assailants then ran to a separate vehicle driven by a third person and fled from the scene.”
Lee said SBI authorities “worked diligently” during the investigation to determine the identity of the suspects. Evidence obtained tied Murphy to the homicide, the district attorney noted. The identities of the other alleged suspects have not been verified, Lee told the Independent.
“This evidence included forensic evidence, video surveillance footage, phone records, social media records and internet browser records,” Lee noted. The FBI Cellular Analysis Survey Team assisted the investigation and prosecution. FBI Special Agent Harrison Putman obtained cellular phone records of the defendant, which placed Murphy in Beulaville around the time of homicide.
“This was a challenging prosecution requiring a significant amount of time to prepare, meet with witnesses, review lab reports and social media records,” said Lee upon the sentencing.
The state was represented by Assistant District Attorneys Jason McGuirt and Lori Carroll, and assisted by Administrative Assistant II Amy Hedgpeth, who coordinated with many witnesses and family members. The defendant was represented by Paul Castle of Jacksonville.
Lee credited the SBI, the Beulaville Police Department, and the FBI Cellular Analysis Survey Team for their efforts in the case, as well as the prosecutors McGuirt and Carroll, along with Hedgpeth, who spent “countless hours assisting the investigation of law enforcement.”
“This was an effort made by all those involved to help remove this violent offender from our community and seek justice for the victim’s family,” Lee stated. “The victim’s family demonstrated grace in court and were very articulate and passionate in their words about their loved one, Randy Anthony Rolla Jr. It (is) hoped by this office that this guilty plea will provide some degree of closure to the victim’s family.”
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