BROOKLYN, N.Y. – A Brooklyn man was sentenced Friday to 18 years to life in prison for fatally shooting a father who was protecting his teenage daughter during an attempted armed burglary in Crown Heights.
Waki Bullock, 33, was convicted last month on two counts of second-degree murder for the killing of 43-year-old Phillip Scarlett on January 13, 2019, at the Kingsborough Houses, a NYCHA complex in Crown Heights.
According to evidence presented at trial, Scarlett was expecting his 14-year-old daughter to visit his sixth-floor apartment for laundry money when Bullock and an alleged accomplice, both masked and armed, grabbed the girl in the hallway. Scarlett rushed to her aid, pulling her to safety inside the apartment. Bullock and his accomplice then dragged Scarlett down the staircase and shot him in the hip and thigh. Scarlett was pronounced dead at Interfaith Medical Center.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez condemned the violence, stating, “The viciousness of the defendant’s actions cannot be overstated, and the lengthy prison term to which he has been sentenced holds him accountable for killing an innocent man in cold blood.”
Bullock fled to Georgia after the shooting but was captured and extradited to Brooklyn on July 10, 2021.
The alleged co-defendant, Rashawn Brown, 28, is still awaiting trial on murder, attempted burglary, and weapons charges. His next court appearance is scheduled for February 6, 2025.