Swavy, the 19-year-old TikTok creator whose real name was Matima Miller, was shot and killed by Israel Lecompte on July 5, 2021, in Wilmington, Delaware. Lecompte, a member of the NorthPak gang, was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder in April 2024 and sentenced to two mandatory life terms plus 163 years. The Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the conviction in September 2025.
Who Swavy Was
Matima Miller posted dance routines and comedic videos under the name Swavy, often filmed in malls, airports, and other public spaces. At 19 he had roughly 2.7 million TikTok followers and more than 400,000 on Instagram. His death drew immediate attention from fans and from the broader social media community.
The Night of the Shooting
On the evening of July 5, 2021, Wilmington police responded to a 911 call on the 700 block of Elbert Place in the Southbridge neighborhood. Officers found Miller with a gunshot wound. He was taken to a local hospital and did not survive. Police initially had no suspect in custody and had not recovered a weapon.
Three days earlier, 22-year-old Quinton Dorsey had been fatally shot on the 900 block of Lombard Street on Wilmington’s East Side. The two killings looked unrelated at first. Investigators later tied them to the same shooter.
The Gang Motive
Prosecutors established at trial that Lecompte’s motive was tied to an ongoing feud between NorthPak and rival groups of young people in Wilmington. Law enforcement described NorthPak as one of the most violent gangs in the city and a major driver of gun violence across the state. Miller’s killing was part of that conflict.1State of Delaware News. Final NorthPak Defendant Convicted of Two Murders, More Than 50 Felonies
How Investigators Identified Lecompte
A stolen black Nissan Maxima linked both the Dorsey murder on July 2 and the Miller murder on July 5. When police recovered the vehicle on July 7, fingerprints lifted from it matched Lecompte.2Justia Case Law. State of Delaware v. Lecompte
Shell casings from a separate shooting on July 4 were ballistically matched to casings from the Dorsey homicide. Projectiles recovered from Miller’s murder were consistent with the .38 caliber family. A witness identified Lecompte as the Dorsey shooter through a photo lineup.2Justia Case Law. State of Delaware v. Lecompte
Digital evidence filled the remaining gaps. Around 4:03 a.m. on one of the nights in question, Wilmington police captured an Instagram Live video from an account linked to Lecompte. It showed him wearing a black hoodie with white drawstrings and black latex gloves, heading north on I-95 toward Philadelphia shortly after a silver Nissan Maxima had been stolen. A crashed red Chrysler connected to the July 4 shooting yielded another fingerprint match, and a cell phone found in the car contained a Delaware state ID belonging to Lecompte.2Justia Case Law. State of Delaware v. Lecompte
Charges, Trial, and Sentence
A grand jury indicted Lecompte, then 18, on 38 felonies on November 8, 2021, including two counts of first-degree murder for the killings of Miller and Dorsey.3State of Delaware News. New Defendant Indicted in NorthPak Case
On April 4, 2024, a New Castle County jury found him guilty of 56 felonies. The convictions included the two first-degree murders, 14 counts of first-degree reckless endangering, four counts of first-degree robbery, 21 counts of possessing a firearm during a felony, six counts of second-degree conspiracy, and illegal gang participation, among others.1State of Delaware News. Final NorthPak Defendant Convicted of Two Murders, More Than 50 Felonies
Under Delaware law, anyone convicted of first-degree murder for an offense committed after their eighteenth birthday faces mandatory life imprisonment without probation, parole, or any other reduction.4Justia. Delaware Code Title 11 Chapter 42 Section 4209 – Punishment for First-Degree Murder Committed by Adult Offenders Lecompte, 21 at sentencing, received two mandatory life sentences for the two murders plus 163 additional years for the remaining convictions.
The Appeal
Lecompte appealed to the Delaware Supreme Court. The appeal was submitted on July 3, 2025, and the court affirmed the lower court’s judgment on September 15, 2025. The justices concluded that the appeal was “wholly without merit and devoid of any arguably appealable issues.”5Justia Case Law. Lecompte v. State The convictions and life sentences stand.