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Tuesday, June 10, 2008 10:55 AM Murder suspect sentenced for break-ins By Gina Childress | Staff Writer GREENE COUNTY -- One of the five men accused of killing Stantonsburg restaurant owner Song Ni on July 28, 2007, during a home invasion was sentenced to probation in a Greene County courtroom Monday on breaking and entering charges. Stacey Devon Atkinson, 36, of Walstonburg, was sentenced by Judge J.B. Hockenbury under a plea agreement, to three years probation and ordered to repay $3,927 in restitution. According to the Greene County Clerk of Court's Office, the break-ins occurred on July 26, 2007, just two days before 34-year-old Ni was murdered. According to investigators, a sketchy surveillance video recorded during a Greene County residential break-in led authorities to the five men connected with Ni's death. Reginald Lemonte Atkinson, Darryl Wilkes and Stacey Atkinson are charged with breaking into Ni's home, which was located across the street from his restaurant, Jin Jin Chinese, 104 Moyton Ave. Six other occupants of the home were present when the invasion took place. Wilson County Sheriff investigators believe the Atkinsons and Wilkes were waiting behind a utility shed near the house. As two employees from the restaurant made their way into the home, the three suspects forced their way in and were able to take an undisclosed amount of money from the home. Ni was shot and killed when he tried to keep the intruders from getting into his office by attempting to closing the door. The suspects then fled the scene and were arrested about a week later. Reginald Atkinson and Wilkes, both 36 and of Farmville, were arrested along with Stacey Atkinson and charged with 11 felony charges, including first-degree murder, second-degree kidnapping, armed robbery and first-degree burglary. Two other men, Ellis Hunter III, 23 and Steven Maurice Joyner, 37, both of Farmville face accessory after the fact charges. They are both accused of providing an alibi and possibly destroying evidence in connection with the crime. No trial date has been set as of yet for any of the suspects. gina@wilsontimes.com | 265-7821 |
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