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The leader of a violent crime network that operated in Sussex and Kent counties will spend the remainder of his life in prison after being sentenced to the maximum time allowed by a Superior Court judge.
A jury convicted Steven Kellam, 37, of Seaford, last year for his involvement in a January 2014 home invasion robbery on Harmon’s Hill Road in Millsboro, during which Cletis Nelson and William Hopkins were shot and killed, in addition to several other crimes.
Kellam’s criminal enterprise was brought down in the summer of 2015 by a joint investigation by the Delaware State Police and the Delaware Department of Justice, called Operation “In the House.” Kellam was convicted by a jury in November 2017 of 2 counts of Murder First Degree, 1 count of Organized Crime and Racketeering, 27 counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, 3 counts of Conspiracy Second Degree, 1 count of Conspiracy First Degree, 3 counts of Home Invasion, 2 counts of Robbery First Degree, 2 counts of Assault Second Degree, 1 count of Assault Third Degree, 2 counts of Attempted Robbery First Degree, and 1 count of Wearing a Disguise During the Commission of a Felony.
Deputy Attorneys General Chris Hutchison and Martin Cosgrove prosecuted the case and secured the sentence of 2 life terms plus 769 years in prison.