An Illinois resident has reached a plea agreement that spares him from facing a murder conviction and a lengthy prison sentence. He was implicated in a shooting incident alongside his brother that tragically resulted in the death of a pregnant woman and her unborn child, while leaving the woman’s 4-year-old daughter blind in one eye.

The altercation is reported to have originated from a disagreement over the social media platform Snapchat.

According to a GoFundMe page dedicated to the victim, Ja’Niah Thomas, she was described as “an innocent bystander” who was simply sitting on a couch when stray bullets struck her. At the time of the incident in 2023, Thomas was 20 years old and 26 weeks pregnant when 18-year-old Mattavius Anderson allegedly fired shots into the residence she occupied.

The GoFundMe page further recounts, “Her precious four-year-old daughter was hit in the eye during the incident.”

Now 21, Anderson was scheduled to face trial but opted for a plea deal before proceedings could commence. This agreement resulted in the dismissal of all nine charges against him, which included murder and aggravated battery with a firearm, as reported by local CBS outlet WCIA. He was instead convicted on a single charge of residential burglary.

Online court records show that Anderson was sentenced to 15 years in prison, with credit given for time served. He was scheduled for a bench trial after waiving a jury in September. Anderson’s brother, Mattarion Anderson, chose to go the same route and was found guilty by Judge Thomas Griffith in May of murder and sentenced to 40 years behind bars.

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.