Left inset: Mattavius Anderson (Macon County Sheriff’s Office). Right inset: Ja’Niah Thomas and her daughter (GoFundMe). Background: The 1300 block of North Woodford Street in Macon County, Ill., where Ja’Niah Thomas and her 4-year-old daughter were both shot in 2023 (WCIA/YouTube).
A man from Illinois has reached a plea agreement that spares him from a murder conviction and a lengthy prison term. He was implicated in a shooting, alongside his brother, that tragically resulted in the deaths of a pregnant woman and her unborn child, while also leaving the woman’s 4-year-old daughter permanently injured.
The incident reportedly arose from a disagreement on Snapchat.
The victim, Ja’Niah Thomas, was described on a GoFundMe page as an “innocent bystander,” struck by stray bullets while she sat on a couch. Thomas, aged 20 and 26 weeks pregnant at the time, was allegedly shot by Mattavius Anderson, who was 18 when the 2023 shooting occurred.
The GoFundMe page also notes that Thomas’s “precious four-year-old daughter was shot in the eye” during the incident.
Anderson, now 21, was poised to face trial on Tuesday but instead agreed to a plea deal. This arrangement led to the dismissal of all nine charges against him, including murder and aggravated battery with a firearm, as reported by CBS affiliate WCIA. He was convicted on a single charge of residential burglary instead.
According to online court records, Anderson received a 15-year prison sentence, with credit for time already served. He had opted for a bench trial, foregoing a jury in September. Meanwhile, his brother, Mattarion Anderson, took a similar path but was found guilty of murder by Judge Thomas Griffith in May and sentenced to 40 years in prison.
Prosecutors have said that Thomas was at her boyfriend’s home in the 1300 block of North Woodford Street in Macon County with her two children, ages 4 and 2, when the Andersons and another individual, Tarlan Mackey, went to the residence and opened fire following a Snapchat dispute with someone who was also inside the home.
Thomas’ boyfriend and his brother went outside to confront the Andersons, whom they knew, when bullets started flying, according to prosecutors.
Thomas picked up her 4-year-old daughter and immediately dropped to the floor, but they were both struck by gunfire, WCIA reports. The child was shot in the face and lost her right eye. Thomas suffered fatal injuries. Her 2-year-old son was not hurt.
After the shooting, the brother of Thomas’ boyfriend allegedly received a text message from one of the Andersons’ relatives in which he “apologized for what his brothers did,” according to WCIA.
Thomas was described in an obituary as a forklift operator and Decatur native who “loved to sing, laugh, dance, and spend time with her children and family.” Her unborn child, Ja’Nylah Brielle Thomas, died with her.
“[Thomas] didn’t take pride in anything more than being a mother,” a cousin told WCIA.
The third individual who was allegedly involved in the shooting, Mackey, was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to a residential burglary charge.
