BROOKLYN, NY – James Oliver, 44, of East Flatbush, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison on Thursday for the fatal shooting of Brooklyn rapper, Darnell Pettway, aged 30.
The sentence was given by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun, following Oliver’s guilty plea to second-degree murder on April 26, 2023.
According to evidence presented, the incident occurred on December 2, 2017, during a gathering where Oliver got into a dispute over a stolen cellphone.
Enraged by Pettway’s lack of interest in the matter, Oliver left the scene, only to return with a firearm and fatally shoot Pettway. The defendant then fled to Pennsylvania and was apprehended on January 1, 2019.