Malik Antonio Rollins, 29, Austell, entered a guilty plea Thursday to burglarizing two homes and molesting a young girl in one of them.

Presiding Judge Robert E. Flournoy III, who filled in for Cobb County Superior Court Judge Sonja N. Brown, sentenced Rollins to 20 years without the possibility of parole followed by 20 years to serve on probation.

The mother of the victim spoke at the plea, and other family members gave impact statements.

The public information release from the office of Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady, Jr. described the incident leading to the arrest and the negotiated plead deal as follows:

“On February 12, 2021, at around 2 a.m., Cobb County police officers responded to a call about a burglary at the Chroma Park apartment complex in Austell, Georgia. The victim, who was asleep at the time, awoke to the sound of her bedroom door opening. She screamed and scared the intruder away but not before he took two tablets. The victim had Ring video cameras inside the home and was able to share footage with the officers. It provided an accurate description of the burglar.

“Two hours later, at an apartment complex within walking distance on East-West Connector, another burglary was reported. An adult male living in the home woke up at around 4 a.m. and realized that his son’s gaming console was missing, and the patio door was ajar.

“The man then noticed that the light was on in his children’s bedroom. When he walked into the doorway, he noticed a partially naked man sleeping next to his then 12-year-old stepdaughter.

“The sixth grader mouthed “help me” to her stepfather, who then ran into the kitchen and grabbed a knife to remove the man from their home. The victim’s mother woke up from the commotion and called 911. The victim was then taken to the hospital and disclosed that the man in her bed had sodomized and molested her.

“Later that day, Cobb County Police used the location function on one of the stolen tablets that led officers to an apartment at Chroma Park. Rollins’ mother answered the door and confirmed his identity as the burglar in the video footage. Rollins was arrested and a search of the home revealed stolen items from the burglarized homes in addition to the clothing he was seen wearing.”

“The strength of this young lady to stand up to this defendant and take charge of her healing is courageous. Her family has built a strong foundation to support her moving forward,” said Assistant District Attorney Kristen Judd who prosecuted Rollins. “The Cobb County Police Department and Sgt. Lindsay Mack should be commended for their hard work and investigation on this case. Without their tremendous efforts, Mr. Rollins would not have been brought to justice today.”

Marietta Attorney Reid Thompson represented Rollins during plea negotiations.