Prison
Prison

Atlantic City felon who shot man over dice game sentenced to 8 years in prison

Mays Landing, NJ – A convicted felon who opened fire during a courtyard dice game in Atlantic City — shooting a man in the stomach at point-blank range — has been sentenced to eight years in state prison, prosecutors announced Monday.

Ibn Demps, 26, of Atlantic City, will serve the term under both the Graves Act and the No Early Release Act, which mandates he serve at least 85% of his sentence before being eligible for parole. After release, Demps will face three years of intensive parole supervision.

The shooting took place just before 4:40 p.m. on September 21, 2022, near 154 N. South Carolina Avenue. Surveillance footage captured Demps in a group of men gambling when he suddenly drew a handgun and shot another man in the abdomen. The victim survived.

Demps fled the scene and was arrested on December 9 inside the same home that security footage showed him entering immediately after the shooting. A firearm recovered at that location was later confirmed through ballistics testing to be the weapon used in the assault.

Investigators also uncovered additional evidence after reviewing Demps’ cellphone. Footage from the device revealed Demps had visited a local shooting range in November — just weeks after the September incident — where he fired a handgun after lying on a registration form, falsely claiming he had no felony convictions.

Demps ultimately pleaded guilty to two separate indictments: second-degree aggravated assault for the September shooting, and second-degree certain persons not to possess weapons for both the assault and the gun range incident.

At the time of the 2022 shooting, Demps was also scheduled to appear in Recovery Court — a program designed for non-violent offenders with substance abuse histories — but failed to show.

The investigation was conducted by the Atlantic City Police Department’s Violent Crimes Unit and prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Chris D’Esposito of the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office’s Gangs, Guns, and Narcotics Unit.

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