QUEENS, N.Y. — A Virginia man has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the fatal shooting of 33-year-old Kayron Wilson in Long Island City in 2021, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Wednesday.
Khalik Berry, 35, was convicted in February of second-degree murder and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon. Prosecutors said Berry and another man approached a parked car on 40th Avenue just after midnight on May 10, 2021, and Berry opened fire, hitting Wilson seven times in the back, abdomen, and arms.
Wilson was seated in the front passenger seat of a Mercury Milan with his girlfriend, who was unharmed. After the shooting, Berry and his accomplice fled in another vehicle. Wilson was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
Shooter fled New York, captured weeks later in Virginia
Berry, originally from Queens, was arrested in Virginia in June 2021, a month after the shooting, and extradited to New York to face charges. The accomplice reportedly did not fire any shots.
“This defendant fired a gun seven times… killing the young father in cold blood,” District Attorney Katz said. “After this completely senseless act, the defendant left the jurisdiction and was ultimately apprehended a month later in Virginia.”
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Queens Supreme Court Justice Michael Yavinsky delivered the sentence on Tuesday following Berry’s conviction by a jury on February 27.