Man pleads guilty to second-degree murder in death of Vance High School grad

CHARLOTTE — Delvin Teah’s family has gotten a slight bit of closure, as one of the men accused of killing Teah pleaded guilty to his murder.

Malus Bey, 22, pled guilty to second-degree murder, among other charges, Thursday morning inside the Mecklenburg County Courthouse.

In July 2020, Teah was meeting up with Donovan James, another suspect charged in Teah’s death. Bey was also there. Prosecutor’s said they were all meeting for an exchange of marijuana.

Teah was shot twice during the robbery, once in the back by someone sitting behind him and once in the head by Bey, in his own car. He then crashed his car into a tree at the apartment complex nearby.

“I miss my son,” said Aletha Riche, Teah’s mother, as she wept outside the courthouse after the plea deal was agreed to.

Time hasn’t brought much relief to the mother who lost her only son.

“This whole tragedy really blindsided me,” she added.

She still can’t believe the Vance High School graduate was taken from her. She said her son was an academic overachiever, captain of his basketball team, and cared for so many friends and family members.

“I feel like my brother never really got the opportunity to leave his mark here on this Earth,” Teah’s sister, Danielle Teah, said.

Inside the courtroom, Teah’s friends and family spoke before a judge who called their statements “soul-searing.”

One family member looked straight at Bey and addressed him in court for the crime he committed.

“As you sit down, I would like you to replay that moment in your head of you pulling that trigger,” said Nixonette Wright, Teah’s cousin, as tears fell from her eyes. “And what were your thoughts? Did you think you were going to have an everlasting effect on, not only one person, but 50 other people?”

Their family’s faith also offered forgiveness as they try to heal.

“I pray for you brother, every day. When I pray for Delvin, I pray for you, too,” said Denise Coley, a family friend. “I forgive you, I do.”

Coley pleaded with Bey to change his life around by the time he gets out of prison.

Then, Bey’s mother stepped up, offering a sincere, tearful apology to Teah’s family.

“I can’t imagine,” she said as she wept and looked directly at Teah’s family in the courtroom. “And I’m sorry.”

She told the judge her son was a good man, but that he got caught up with the wrong people. Her son, Bey, will spend 13 to 17 years in prison as part of the plea deal he made with prosecutors.

However, Teah’s family wasn’t content with the plea sentence.

“I’m not happy with the decision, but it is what it is,” said Riche.

“We would like for it to be stiffer, [be]cause his life was worth more,” Coley added.

The judge said there is rarely perfect justice, but it is a step towards justice for Teah.

Teah’s family will choose to keep his legacy alive in their own lives and in the life of Delvin’s cousin, who is named after him.

“Your light is going to shine bright and nobody’s going to be able to put your light out early,” Danielle said as she spoke about the boy named after her brother.

James is charged with first-degree murder in Teah’s death. He’s set to go before a judge on Sept. 1.

Another person was arrested in the case, but his charges were dropped.

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