VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Five men face jail time in connection with the killing of an 18-year-old, along with their involvement in gang activity, the commonwealth's attorney's office said Monday.
22-year-old Hassan Abdul Johnson, who faced a jury trial, will be sentenced on Dec. 15. He was found guilty the following charges:
- Second-degree murder
- Maliciously shooting at car resulting in death
- Participation in criminal act for benefit of gang
- Two counts of maliciously shooting at occupied vehicle
- Use of a firearm in the commission of a felony
20-year-old Nasir Nesshon Thomas, who faced a jury trial, was sentenced to 73 years in prison, with five suspended. He will serve 68 years of jail time on the following charges:
- Second-degree murder
- Maliciously shooting at car resulting in death
- Participation in criminal act for benefit of gang
- Nine counts of maliciously shooting at occupied vehicle
- Use of a firearm in the commission of a felony
22-year-old Zion Maleek Urquhart plead guilty, and was sentenced to 50 years in prison with 28 years suspended — so he faces 22 years of jail time for the following charges:
- Second-degree murder
- Maliciously shooting at car resulting in death
- Participation in criminal act for benefit of gang
23-year-old Omari Andre Green, who faced a jury trial, was convicted to 50 years in prison with 15 suspended — so he faces 35 years of jail time for the following charges:
- Second-degree murder
- Maliciously shooting at car resulting in death
- Participation in criminal act for benefit of gang
23-year-old Malachi Isaiah Handy was sentenced to 20 years with eight suspended — he will serve 12 years in jail. Handy pled guilty to the following charges:
- Maliciously shooting at an occupied vehicle
- Participation in criminal act for benefit of gang
Prosecutors argued and proved that all five of the defendants are members of the "Spazz gang."
The group stole vehicles in Virginia Beach on June 14, 2021. The group was driving two stolen vehicles when they saw 18-year-old Damion Julio Rodriguez-Kirkland in a car with three other people.
"There's the opps," Green said before he and the other defendants fired around 50 shots at the car occupied by Rodriguez-Kirkland.
This phrase is in reference to opposing gang members — however, Rodriguez-Kirkland and the others in the car were not affiliated with a gang, nor did the Spazz gang members know who they were, according to the commonwealth's attorney's office. Rodriguez-Kirkland died several days after police found him shot in a car.
Phone call records, recovered firearms, DNA evidence, and footage from nearby doorbell cameras were used to convict the defendants, according to the commonwealth's attorney's office.
“These convictions send a resounding message that violence and gang activity will not be tolerated in Virginia Beach and that there are certain and substantial consequences for those that choose to ignore this warning,” said Virginia Beach Police Department Chief Paul Neudigate.
