‘I’m taking the gun’: Man killed Columbus woman, wounded friend in city park, cops say
Six people in a single car went to Columbus’ Benning Hills Park the night Brianna Robinson was shot dead and a close friend critically wounded, a police officer testified Wednesday in court.
Four of the six were males armed with guns; two were unarmed females, Sgt. Mark Neal testified during a preliminary hearing for Kenneth Miles, 21, charged with murder and aggravated assault.
The six had been driving around, stopping at a gas station for snacks, before they went to the park at 101 Patton Drive to talk about what they would do next, Neal said. They stopped at a parking lot on the park’s north side, near a row of homes on Prado Drive, he said.
That’s where Miles first asked to borrow a gun belonging to Robinson’s 19-year-old friend, and then said, “I’m taking the gun” as he shot the friend multiple times and then gunned down Robinson, Neal testified.
Prado Drive residents hearing the gunfire called police shortly before midnight on Feb. 12. Robinson’s friend survived, after he was rushed to Piedmont Columbus Regional.
Shot multiple times, Robinson, 22, was pronounced dead at the scene at 12:54 a.m. Feb. 13, police said.
After the shooting, Miles got back in the car with the others and left, leaving nine .380-caliber shell casings behind, Neal said. Three witnesses who were present identified him as the shooter, the sergeant said, adding one witness since has been killed in another homicide.
Booked Tuesday into the Muscogee County Jail, Miles claimed he knew nothing of the shooting and was in Warner Robins, Georgia, that night, Neal said. Miles was not present at Wednesday’s hearing, having waived his appearance.
Recorder’s Court Judge Julius Hunter found probable cause to send Miles’ case to Muscogee Superior Court. Miles is being held without bond.
Anyone with more information on the shooting may contact Neal at 706-653-3400, 706-225-4295, or mneal@columbusga.org.
This story was originally published April 6, 2022 at 1:07 PM.