Dred Coleman, 24, who has gangster tattooed on one arm and killa on the other, was convicted of aggravated murder and aggravated burglary

Dred Coleman, 24, who has gangster tattooed on one arm and killa on the other, was convicted of aggravated murder and aggravated burglary for killing a Columbus man who was a witness in a drug-trafficking case."He came here from Cleveland in order to do this dirty business," Judge Daniel T. Hogan said in handing down the maximum sentence. "The message I want to send, whether it's heard or not, is this is what happens here when you do that."County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien said Coleman robbed and killed Darryl Wood, who was a witness in a drug case against Coleman's uncle, Rudolph Lynch. Wood was shot five times on the front lawn of his home on Argyle Drive on Dec. 9, 2008. A co-defendant, Ramon Blevins, 25, testified in Coleman's trial that he heard Wood beg for his lifeHogan also heard from Wood's mother and wife before handing down his sentence. He added 21 years in prison for underlying crimes in case Coleman's murder conviction is ever overturned.On the day Wood died, he had three bales of marijuana in his basement. He had agreed to testify against his fellow dealers, including Lynch, prosecutors said.Coleman's attorney, Fred Crosby, also of Cleveland, asked Hogan for a sentence of 20 years to life."I'm asking you not to shut the door on him," Crosby said.In his trial, Coleman said he came to Columbus with Lynch only to look for a girl and denied having any part in a murder plot. But he admitted that he was present when Lynch and Blevins went into Wood's house searching for drugs. He plans to appeal."The court's already proved that Blevins killed Wood," Coleman said before his sentence was announced. "I'm innocent of this."

Wood, who was 43, had a wife and son and was the brother of a Columbus police officer and also of a police dispatcher who was working in the radio room "I dispatched officers to my brother's house, and God gave me the strength to stay there until my brother was pronounced dead," dispatcher Stephanie Hannah said yes"You have placed yourself into your own prison," she told Coleman in court.Blevins is serving 18 years to life in prison. Lynch wasn't charged in the slaying, but Coleman's parents blamed him yesterday"I never wanted our son to be with Rudolph Lynch, but I never thought he would do this to his sister's kid," Coleman's father, Dred Coleman Sr., told the judge.