The last words 4-year-old Suni Bell cried out were for her mother, moments before a barrage of bullets tore through her family’s car.
On Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2025, five men, Zvante Sampson, Quandarious Hammond, Jaylin Bedward, Andrew Thompson, and James Denson, were each sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for her killing, a crime that left Tampa shaken and a family forever broken.
The men were convicted in September of first-degree murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and shooting into a vehicle for the deadly ambush that claimed Suni’s life on Sept. 17, 2021.
“This is what happens when you make stupid choices without thinking through things,” Judge Robin Fuson said during sentencing, according to WTSP. “Well, the other side for you five is the rest of your lives in prison with no chance of parole.”
A Family Outing Turned Fatal
That evening, Suni was riding in the backseat of her family’s silver Infiniti with her mother and uncle, heading to a family gathering. They pulled over to call relatives after struggling to find the address. Prosecutors said that moment of pause proved fatal.
Surveillance footage from a nearby gas station showed the five men watching the Infiniti before climbing into separate vehicles and pursuing it. Investigators believe the shooters mistook Suni’s family for someone else, a case of mistaken identity with devastating consequences.
“They were on their way to a family gathering and couldn’t find the address, so they pulled over to call family,” said Erin Maloney, spokesperson for the Office of the State Attorney, 13th Judicial Circuit. “You can see the men conspiring with each other on surveillance video before arming themselves and hunting down the vehicle.”
When the gunfire erupted, Suni’s mother recalled her daughter’s terrified cries.
“She just kept saying, ‘Mommy,’ as gunshots rang out,” Maloney said.
Though Suni’s mother and uncle were uninjured, the little girl was struck and rushed to a hospital, where she died from her injuries.
Prosecutors: ‘All Five Men Will Be Held Equally Accountable’
Even though not all of the defendants fired a weapon, prosecutors invoked Florida’s principal theory of prosecution, arguing that each man shared responsibility for the killing.
“Our prosecutors proved that each of the defendants played an active role in planning and carrying out this deadly ambush,” the State Attorney’s Office said in a statement. “As a result, all five men will be held equally accountable for Suni’s death.”
The court heard heartbreaking testimony from Suni’s loved ones. Her grandmother, Drial Harrison, wept as she addressed the court:
“This hurts. This hurts deep. It’s not something you can put a Band-Aid on and heal from,” she said, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Maloney added that Suni had just started pre-kindergarten.
“She was so excited about getting her first backpack and starting school,” she said. “Weeks later, she was gone.”
A Lesson in Accountability
Judge Fuson’s words cut through the courtroom with finality.
“This is what happens when you make stupid choices,” he said. “Acting and reacting without figuring out what’s going to be on the other side.”
For Suni’s family, the sentencing closes one chapter of a nightmare, but the loss remains raw.
