Wilmington man sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison for deadly 2018 stabbing

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — A Wilmington man was sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison on Wednesday for a deadly 2018 stabbing at an apartment complex.

54-year-old Jonathan Dwight Southers entered an Alford guilty plea to Voluntary Manslaughter in New Hanover County Superior Court.

Southers stabbed 56-year-old Yolanda Bentley once in the chest shortly after 2:00 a.m. on April 12, 2018 at Hanover Landing Apartments before riding away on a bike. Bentley died on the scene.

A woman who had been involved in a romantic relationship with Southers told detectives Southers and another friend had been drinking with the woman in her apartment on the night of April 11th. She and Southers got into an argument over her friendship with Bentley.

Neighbors reported hearing another heated argument outside of the woman’s apartment after 2:00 a.m. Investigators believe Bentley and Southers confronted each other outside of that apartment and the violent encounter ensued. Bentley was found dead with one apparent stab wound.

Phone records and cell tower location records showed that the Southers was in the area at the time of the murder and stayed in Wilmington for days after.

Southers made several calls when he was booked at the New Hanover County Detention Center. The recorded conversations captured him telling another woman that she needed to throw his phone into the Cape Fear River. The woman was eventually located and confirmed she had disposed of the phone for Southers.