The last defendant in the January 2021 death of Ball resident Deven Slade Brooks, Tremaine Lavalais, pleaded guilty Aug. 22 during jury selection for his trial.

As jurors were being selected Tuesday afternoon for his trial on a charge of second-degree murder, Tremaine Deshun Veal changed his mind and pleaded guilty in the January 2021 death of Deven Slade Brooks, 27.

Veal, 21, was sentenced to a total of 100 years in prison at hard labor by 9th Judicial District Court Judge Greg Beard. He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter, as well as felony armed robbery.

He was sentenced to 40 years on the manslaughter conviction, which is the maximum, and 60 years on the armed robbery conviction. The sentences are to be served consecutively. Both were designated as crimes of violence and are to be served without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.

Brooks was kidnapped from his Ball apartment by Veal, his cousin, Jamaria Xavier Randle; and Randle 's husband, Terrance Lavalais. Randle was painted as the force behind a plot to steal money Brooks had inherited during her trial by Rapides Parish Assistant District Attorney Lea Hall, who also prosecuted the other two cases.

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She was found guilty by a jury in February and later was sentenced to life in prison. Lavalais pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, but he has not been sentenced yet.

After trying to gain access to that money through Brooks' iPhone, he was taken to Alexandria's Levee Park near the Red River. He was bound with steel cables, Gorilla Tape and zip ties and then shot once in his head.

A sentencing date for Lavalais has not been set yet.

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Tremaine Veal pleads guilty to Deven Brooks' murder, gets 100 years