DeKalb families looking for answers in 2017 triple homicide

“Some things are a blur because, over time, some things I’ve forgotten mostly to protect myself cause it hurts too bad to think about a lot of stuff,” Matthews said Thursday. “I was in denial, I really thought that everything was going to be okay.”

Matthews sat down with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at a press event organized by the DeKalb County district attorney aimed at boosting community awareness about the case.

It’s one tactic law enforcement and prosecutors employ to try to get answers in cases after the trail has gone cold. DeKalb is among several law enforcement offices in the state, including the GBI, focused on clearing cold cases.

The Matthews family was originally from Ohio and had moved to DeKalb County years ago. Matthews said Stanford had moved to Michigan, where he started a family, but had moved back to Georgia months prior to the shooting while trying to get his trucking license.

She described them both as funny and silly, who were loyal to those they loved and cared about.

“If they loved you, they loved you. They would defend you or they wouldn’t want nothing to happen to you,” Matthews said.

Robinson was considered family by the Hendersons, and more like a brother to her kids, Matthews said.

The families had grown up in the same neighborhood, Robinson’s sister, Teekay Williams, said on Thursday. They would often walk to each other’s house and spend time together.

She recalls not being able to sleep that night before getting a text from Robinson and Stanford’s roommate that their apartment had been shot. She called them and didn’t get a response, before she called the police and headed to the apartment complex.

“It’s been a whirlwind honestly because it’s not just my family that was affected — it was other families that were affected so it’s just kind of hard just to think back to when it first happened,” Williams said.

She misses being able to laugh with Robinson and sometimes even catches herself when she wants to send something funny to her brother.

She gives credit to Matthews for getting the ball rolling in keeping the case open and insisting investigators continue to look into the case. The DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office is currently seeking new leads.

Along with Crime Stoppers, the reward has been increased to $15,000 for any information into the murders.

Jacques Spencer, DeKalb DA supervising investigator with the homicides and gang unit, said one of the challenges is the time that has passed, but they are still working trying to develop new leads and hoping community members can provide information.

“We’re hoping with the anniversary coming up that more people are willing to call in, especially with the increased reward,” Spencer said.

The DeKalb DA’s Office has investigated, prosecuted and gotten convictions in a number of cold cases recently. Earlier this year, the DeKalb County Cold Case Task Force held a Missing Persons and DNA Event in the hopes to get new leads, hunt down potential connections and identify victims.

In March, a DeKalb County jury found Kenneth Perry guilty of rape, murder and other charges in the 1990 deaths of 46-year-old John Sumpter and his sister, 43-year-old Pamela Sumpter. It was a DNA match that was a breakthrough in the case.

In June, Reginald Colwell was convicted and sentenced to two life sentences in the 1988 sexual assault of a woman. A DNA match from a 1988 rape kit was able to assist prosecutors in securing a conviction.

Williams hopes that the renewed attention on her brother’s and their friend’s case prompts those who know something to speak up.

Matthews understands people might be fearful to speak up but is hopeful to get justice for her children.

“Everybody is going to pass away sooner or later, but it’s how they died that it’s hard. It’s hard that someone would do that to your loved one,” Matthews said. “What kind of person would do something like that?”

Anyone with information can contact Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477 or text “CSGA” to 738477.