Man Murdered 8-Year-Old Sister for ‘Talking Back’

A Michigan man will spend decades behind bars after fatally shooting his 8-year-old sister in what police called a senseless and “heinous” act of violence.

Gyasi Stribling, now 24, was sentenced this week to 40 to 60 years in prison for the 2021 murder of Bailei Singleton inside their Southfield apartment. Prosecutors said the young girl was shot in the living room simply for “talking back.”

The horrifying crime shook the community and left even seasoned officers struggling to contain their emotions.

“Bailei Singleton should still be here with us today,” Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said in a statement. “Her murder was a tragedy for her family. It’s unconscionable that anyone, let alone an 8-year-old child, could be murdered by a relative and in their own home over the slightest of disagreements.”

Southfield police were called to the 12 North Apartments on January 3, 2021. Bailei was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but died days later from her injuries.

At first, Stribling tried to claim the shooting happened during a robbery, but investigators quickly unraveled the lie. Two other people who were in the apartment at the time told police what really happened — and the murder weapon, which Stribling had tried to dispose of, was eventually recovered.

He was arrested just days later and has remained in the Oakland County Jail ever since.

“It’s stressful for us,” Southfield Police Chief Elvin Barren told local reporters. “It’s stressful for me to stand here before you and control my emotions when talking about an 8-year-old child.”

He added that he was confident Stribling would be held accountable — and he was right. A jury took just two days to convict him of first-degree murder last month.