Two Men Sentenced to Life Without Parole in Brutal Gilligan’s Island Murder

A Camden County jury on April 2, 2025, found 56-year-old Frank Patrick Kennedy and 29-year-old Anthony Scott Mistretta guilty of Malice Murder, Felony Murder, Kidnapping, and multiple other felony charges in the horrific torture and murder of 29-year-old John Andrew Mamph. The crime occurred in a remote area of St. Marys off Highway 40, known locally as “Gilligan’s Island.”

Evidence presented during the trial revealed that on July 5, 2023, Kennedy and Mistretta beat and hog-tied Mamph near his homeless encampment at “Gilligan’s Island.” They then transported him to a nearby boat ramp, put him in a boat, and took him onto a lake. While still bound, the defendants weighed Mamph down with multiple weights and dumped him into the lake, causing him to drown.

Mamph’s body was discovered the following day, July 6, by a local citizen jet-skiing with his family. The citizen spotted the submerged body in the clear water, returned to shore, and called 911. St. Marys police, with assistance from the Camden County Sheriff’s Office dive team and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, recovered the body and launched an immediate investigation, leading to arrests that same night based on eyewitness accounts.

Deputy Chief ADA Hal Moroz of the Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office successfully prosecuted the case, presenting 15 witnesses and numerous pieces of evidence. Moroz lauded the prosecution as “the culmination of an outstanding team effort” involving the St. Marys Police Department, the Camden County Sheriff’s Office, and the GBI.

Immediately after the guilty verdict, Superior Court Judge Anthony Harrison sentenced both Kennedy and Mistretta to life in prison without the possibility of parole, ensuring they will spend the remainder of their lives incarcerated.

Prior to the trial, other individuals charged in connection with the murder also pleaded guilty. Debra Leane Dougherty, 38, pleaded guilty to Felony Murder and received a life sentence with the possibility of parole after serving 30 years. Bernice Rose McGuire, 27, pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Aggravated Assault and is awaiting sentencing. Megan Leigh Robison, 34, who initially lied to law enforcement, pleaded guilty to Making a False Statement and was sentenced to 5 years probation.