GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — One person charged in Grand Rapids' final homicide case from 2023 was convicted this week on multiple counts that will send him to prison for life.
Dominike Sterling was found guilty on Thursday of killing Darryl Yaber back on November 6, 2023 along Horton Avenue. That shooting came hours after two bodies were dumped in the streets of the same neighborhood.
The 34-year-old Sterling was one of five people, including his brother, Samuel Sterling, believed to be involved in carrying out the shooting of Yaber.
WATCH: Charges announced in Darryl Yaber's shooting
Investigators said Sterling was the one who pulled the trigger that day. He was charged with First-Degree Murder, Conspiracy to Commit Murder, Possession of Firearm by a Felon, and Use of a Firearm in Commission of a Felony. Sterling was charged as a habitual offender, which would elevate the maximum penalty for an non-life sentences. He previously spent time in prison and was on parole at the time of the shooting for a 2017 armed robbery.
One other suspect has been charged in the case. Tyriq Bettison also faces counts of First-Degree Murder and Conspiracy to Commit Murder. Detectives claim he was riding with Yaber before the shooting, feeding updates on their location to the Sterling brothers.
Bettison is awaiting trial, which is scheduled to begin in January.
Samuel Sterling, Dominike's brother, would have also been charged in the case according to Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom. However the 25-year-old was killed before the charges were announced when he ran from a U.S. Marshals task force.
Sterling's death resulted in charges against Michigan State Police Sergeant Brian Keely. That case, which was later moved to federal court, was dismissed because of an immunity clause in the U.S. Constitution.
Dominike Sterling is set to be sentenced on February 26, 2026.
