A Whitfield County sheriff's vehicle is parked in front of a Kanku's Express on Monday after a kiling at the gas station in Dalton, Ga.

Skyy Raven Marie Mims is a suspect in the killing of a Dalton, Ga., store clerk.

Skyy Mims

The U.S. Marshals Service arrested 21-year-old Skyy Raven Marie Mims in Bartow County, Ga., Tuesday in the Sunday slaying of a Dalton gas station attendant.

Mims was brought to Whitfield County and was being held without bond Tuesday night on murder charges, according to a release from the Whitfield County Sheriff's Office.

The GBI received information that Mims was staying at a residence in Bartow County and provided the U.S. Marshals with the location.

Just after 5:30 p.m. officers detected movement in the home and entered. They located Mims, who attempted to flee but was taken into custody.

A team of investigators from the Whitfield County Sheriff's Office searched the residence for evidence Tuesday, and a vehicle the suspect has been traveling in was recovered. The Kia Soul SUV had been reported stolen in Michigan.

Before her arrest, Mims had advertised so much of herself to the world.

She wants to earn a living as a model, a rapper, a dancer, a designer. And she wants to make sure you, the viewer who stumbled on her Facebook page or Twitter account or one of her dozens of YouTube videos, know all about her dreams, and about her positive outlook on the world.

And yet, for all this self-promotion, 21-year-old Mims has not shared some important details.

If Mims did kill 37-year-old Dahyabhai Kalidas Chaudmari, as investigators say, why did she do it? Has she done something like this before? And how did she, a Detroit native, wind up in Dalton, Ga.?

"We have no idea," Georgia Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Greg Ramey said Tuesday, two days after police say Mims killed Chaudmari. "At this point, that is the key question."

As best as can be determined, she has no criminal record in the Detroit area, Ramey said.

On Sunday night, according to police, Mims killed Chaudmari inside a Hi-Tech Fuel convenience store at 3385 Airport Road. Then she snatched some scratch-off lottery tickets and cash before taking off.

Ramey declined to say Tuesday how Chaudmari died, how investigators identified Mims or whether she allegedly stole any other items before leaving the convenience store. Chaudmari has some cousins in the Northwest Georgia area, but most of his family members still live in India.

Ron Williamson, manager of the company that owns the gas station, said surveillance video shows Chaudmari's killer grabbing him by the mouth from behind, and striking him over and over. Williamson believes the killer used a knife.

He said Chaudmari is from the northwest coast of India. He had worked at the convenience store for only a couple of weeks, but he was known for his smile. Others called him "Dicky."

Police know much more about Mims. Like many people her age, she broadcast much of her life online, where strangers find her, discover her, threaten her. On Tuesday, as news spread about the suspect, people flooded her Facebook page and YouTube videos with comments.

Store photograph of suspect involved in store robbery at Kanku's Express in Whitfield County, Ga.

"You killed my friend," one man wrote. "You can run but we will bring justice down on you."

"Turn yourself in," others pleaded.

Her social media profiles provide a picture of who she is, and who she wants to be. Mims, who turned 21 on Thursday, is an aspiring rapper with the stage name Yo Skyy.

"Last time I checked, I was only human," she raps in one song. "In a world filled with wrong, right is what I'm pursuing.

I grew up in many places and I was just a youth when my father left my mother covered up in bruises.

What were you expecting, a fairy tale? A pretty little princess with some cherry nails?"

In 2011, Mims graduated from a Detroit high school that no longer exists. At that same time, she attended the Golightly Career and Technical Center, where she took classes in culinary arts and mass media.

That same year she was part of a four-person team that finished in first place in the "Talk Show" category at the Michigan High School and College Broadcast Awards.

According to her Facebook profile, she has been in Atlanta for at least a month. Ramey said investigators believe she came to the area to further her career goals. Her YouTube account is stacked with videos of her modeling, dancing and announcing her future clothing line, "Obsessed Fresh."

But most of her videos feature her rapping.

"Pain is in my past, happiness is what I'm after," she raps. "Through the ups and downs, it's just another chapter."

Last year, Mims released a mixtape called "Just for F.U.N." She plans to follow that effort with a new collection this year called "Just for Love." Like the lyrics of many rap songs, hers is a mix of stories, brags ... and threats:

"Grim reaper on the track, hoodie with no mask. Let 'em see who I am for the simple fact that it'll be their last glance."

Staff writer David Cobb contributed to this story.

Contact staff writer Tyler Jett at 423-757-6476 or tjett@timesfreepress.com.