MINNEAPOLIS — A Twin Cities man will serve at least three decades in prison for the murder of his ex-girlfriend.
Erick Haynes pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder earlier this month in connection with the November 2022 shooting of Zaria McKeever. On Friday, a Hennepin County judge sentenced Haynes to a mandatory life sentence with the possibility of parole after 30 years.
According to the criminal indictment in the case, Haynes recruited two juveniles to confront McKeever's new boyfriend at their apartment in Brooklyn Center; prosecutors said the juveniles shot McKeever multiple times before fleeing in a vehicle driven by Haynes.
McKeever's family remembered her in emotional statements read to the court before Haynes was formally sentenced.
“Zaria sure as hell didn’t deserve this fate,” McKeever’s mother, Maria Greer, told the court. She said the family has relocated twice since her daughter's death, and she now hates returning to Minnesota.
“He stole Zaria’s life because of jealousy and anger. She didn’t deserve to be killed, especially by (a) known assailant, someone who called me ‘mom,’” Greer said, breaking down in tears. “He was supposed to love her, take care of her.”
"Zaria had so much life ahead of her, it was stolen out of pure hate and jealousy," McKeever's older sister, Tiffany Epps, told the court.
Haynes briefly addressed the court to say sorry to Zaria McKeever's family.
In issuing the sentence, the judge noted that while there is a possibility of parole under the terms of the sentence, it is not guaranteed.
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The case received extra attention after Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty offered the teens a deal that would have them serve just two years in a juvenile facility in exchange for testifying against Haynes. McKeever's family publicly decried the deal, and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison eventually stepped in and took the case from Moriarty.
One of the juvenile suspects, Foday Kevin Kamara, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as an adult on March 22, and was granted a downward departure in his sentence in exchange for his testimony against Haynes.
Two others, Eriana Haynes and Tavion James, also entered guilty pleas for one charge each of aiding an offender after the fact for their roles.
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