Former Fort Gordon soldier pleads guilty to second degree murder

SAVANNAH, Georgia: The defendant charged in the December 2024 shooting death of a Fort Gordon soldier faces up to life in federal prison after pleading guilty in U.S. District Court.

Natravien R. Landry, 27, of Abbeville, Louisiana, a former soldier in the U.S. Army National Guard, pled guilty to Murder in the Second Degree and Use of a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence in the death of U.S. Army Sgt. Andre S. Stewart Jr., said Margaret E. "Meg" Heap, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

The plea agreement subjects Landry to a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, up to life, along with substantial financial penalties and a period of supervised release upon completion of any prison term.

There is no parole in the federal system.

"This guilty plea acknowledges the defendant's responsibility, representing a step towards justice," said U.S. Attorney Heap. "We commend the dedication of the U.S. Army CID and prosecutors whose efforts ensured this case would conclude in a conviction."

As described in court documents and testimony, Landry was an Army National Guard soldier assigned to the 1148^th Transportation Company at Fort Gordon. He was working with his Guard unit at Fort Gordon early in the morning of Dec. 14, 2024, when he visited an apartment on the installation of a woman with whom Landry shares a child. After seeing a vehicle parked outside the apartment and suspecting another man was at the residence, Landry walked inside the apartment to a bedroom upstairs and found Stewart and two children. Landry, who was aware Stewart was unarmed, shot him once in chest. Stewart later was pronounced dead in the apartment.

After the shooting, Landry drove away from Fort Gordon and was arrested about three hours later south of Atlanta on Interstate 85 during a traffic stop by the Meriwether County, Georgia, Sheriff's Office. Deputies recovered a 9 mm Glock pistol that testing proved was used in the shooting.

U.S. District Court Judge J. Randal Hall will schedule a sentencing hearing upon completion of a presentence investigation by U.S. Probation Services.

"This plea is a testament to the outstanding investigative efforts of our Army CID agents, as well as the dedication of the DOJ prosecution team, and is indicative of our commitment to ensure justice for victims of heinous crimes such as this," said Ryan O'Connor, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division Southeast Field Office. "Army CID will continue to work closely with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to pursue those who would harm members of our communities, and to hold them fully accountable for their actions."

This case was investigated by the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, and prosecuted for the United States by Southern District of Georgia Criminal Division Chief Patricia G. Rhodes and Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry W. Syms Jr.