Two teens charged in killing during fake marijuana deal

He was born in California but had moved to Georgia with his family to get away from gun violence, they said. But Sanifu Henry still became a victim.

The 21-year-old was shot to death in mid-March during a botched drug sale, according to Kennesaw police. There was some marijuana involved, but there was also a mixture of oregano and spinach, according to investigators.

This week, a Cobb County grand jury indicted the pair accused of killing Henry over the fake pot, according to the district attorney. Zier Xzavier Green, 18, and Re’Shard Marquis Lee, 19, were each indicted on seven counts, including three counts of felony murder, aggravated assault, criminal attempt to commit armed robbery, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

Kennesaw police investigated the shooting just after midnight March 15 — the first homicide in the city since 2019, officials confirmed.

Officers got the call about gunfire in the 2600 block of McGuire Drive in the Oakridge neighborhood off Jiles Road. When police arrived, they found “evidence in the roadway, confirming gunfire had occurred,” spokesperson Officer David Buchanan said after the shooting.

A short time later, officers received a report that Henry had arrived at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital with a gunshot wound. He died from his injuries.

Within hours, Green and Lee were charged with Henry’s murder. Both remained Friday in the Cobb jail, where they were being held without bond.

According to their arrest warrants, Green and Lee intended to rob Henry. They “dispensed a mixture of suspected marijuana, a Schedule 1 controlled substance, and other non-controlled substances that resembled oregano, and or spinach leaves,” the arrest warrants state. Henry was a Kell High School graduate and played a variety of sports growing up, his mother wrote on a GoFundMe page after his death.

“Most of all he was protective and caring of everyone who came into his life,” she said.