Men charged in Gilligan's Island murder in St. Marys given life in prison
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Frank Kennedy, 56, and Anthony Mistretta, 29, were sentenced immediately after being convicted of murder and other charges by a jury April 2.

ST. MARYS, Ga. — Two men charged in a “brutal” murder that occurred in the “Gilligan’s Island” area of St. Marys in 2023 were sentenced to life in prison earlier this month, the Brunswick District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.

On April 2, a Camden County jury convicted Frank Kennedy, 56, and Anthony Mistretta, 29, of malice murder, felony murder, kidnapping and “multiple other felony charges” in the “torture” and murder of 29-year-old John Mamph, the district attorney’s office said in a press release. 

Superior Court Judge Anthony Harrison sentenced them immediately following their convictions.

The release states Kennedy and Mistretta “beat and hog-tied” Mamph near his homeless encampment at Gilligan’s Island, which is a remote area of St. Marys off of Highway 40, on July 5, 2023.

Kennedy and Mistretta then took Mamph to a nearby boat ramp, put him in a boat and took him out on a lake, according to the release.

Next, the release states while Mamph was still tied up, Kennedy and Mistretta weighed him down with multiple weights and dumped him in the lake where he drowned.

Mamph’s body was found in the water a day later, July 6, 2023, by a local who was jet-skiing with his family, the district attorney’s office said in the release.

“That very night, law enforcement began making arrests based on eyewitness statements of the horrific crimes,” the release states.

Debra Doughtery, 38, Megan Robison, 34, and Bernice McGuire, 27, were also arrested along with Kennedy and Mistretta in connection to Mamph’s murder.

According to the release, before the trial started for Kennedy and Mistretta, Doughtery, Robison and McGuire pleaded guilty to a “multitude of felony charges.”

Dougherty pleaded guilty to felony murder and was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole; she will be eligible for parole after spending 30 years in prison. McGuire pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, and has yet to be sentenced. 

And Robison, who the release states initially lied to police about her knowledge of Mamph’s murder, pleaded guilty to making a false statement and was sentenced to five years of probation.


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