Sterling Breynard Bell has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for firearms offenses related to the murder of Kendra Roberts, whose body was discovered near Macon, Georgia in 2016. The sentencing took place on October 1, 2025, with Chief U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May presiding. Bell will also serve three years of supervised release and must undergo mental health and substance abuse treatment.
U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg commented on the case: “The diligence of a federal special agent solved a murder and prevented the conviction of an innocent man. By using tools designed to test ballistics, the federal agent linked a gun seized from Bell to shell casings recovered from a murder scene two years earlier. The man initially charged the murder was exonerated, and Bell was brought to justice.”
ATF Assistant Special Agent in Charge Beau Kolodka said: “This case underscores the vital role that the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network plays in solving violent crimes. By linking the firearm used in this tragic murder to Sterling Bell, our agents demonstrated the power of technology in the pursuit of justice.”
According to court information provided by U.S. Attorney Hertzberg, Kendra Roberts was found shot multiple times at close range on August 7, 2016. Her boyfriend was initially charged with her murder and remained in custody for several months.
Ten days after Roberts’s death, Clarkston Police Department seized a Glock 9mm pistol from Sterling Bell without realizing its connection to the crime. Investigators later learned that Bell had purchased the weapon weeks before Roberts’s death by providing false information about his drug use.
In 2018, an ATF special agent used ballistic testing through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) to match Bell’s gun with evidence from the murder scene. Further investigation revealed that Bell had schizophrenia and did not take prescribed medication.
Bell was arrested on federal firearms charges in October 2018, leading to dismissal of charges against Roberts’s boyfriend. He later admitted responsibility for Roberts’s death and received a state sentence of 20 years imprisonment with parole eligibility after serving one-third of his sentence.
On July 3, 2025, Bell pleaded guilty to making false statements to a federal firearms licensee and illegal possession of firearms as an unlawful user of controlled substances.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives led the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laurel B. Milam and Phyllis Clerk prosecuted the case.
For more details about this case or other activities from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
