Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that SEAN PETER, a/k/a “Huggie," JASON CAMPBELL, a/k/a “Holiday," a/k/a “Fish," and STEVEN SYDER were sentenced today for the murder of Brian Gray on Oct. 2, 2012. PETER was sentenced to 23 years in prison, CAMPBELL was sentenced to 23 years in prison, and SYDER was sentenced to 20 years in prison. The defendants were convicted following a six-day jury trial in December 2018 before United States District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald, who imposed today’s sentences.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “As the evidence at trial established, the defendants murdered Brian Gray in cold blood and injured two others. Now, as a result of the jury’s verdict, and the extraordinary efforts of our law enforcement partners, the defendants will spend decades in prison for their heinous
According to the evidence introduced at trial:
On Oct. 2, 2012, CAMPBELL and SYDER spotted Brian Gray and his friends at a neighborhood bodega in the Bronx. CAMPELL and SYDER soon met up with PETER, who had confronted Gray weeks earlier during an attempted drug robbery. The defendants traced the path of Gray and his friends and went to PETER’s residence where they armed themselves with guns stashed in a trash can outside. The defendants then ambushed Gray and his friends outside a residence on Barker Avenue and opened fire, fatally shooting Gray and injuring two others.
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In addition to their prison sentences, PETER, 36, CAMPBELL, 33, and SYDER, 36, all of the Bronx, New York, were each sentenced to three years of supervised release.
Mr. Berman praised the investigative efforts of the Violent Crime Task Force of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department. Mr. Berman also thanked the Teaneck Police Department for their assistance with the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Sagar K. Ravi, Jacqueline C. Kelly, and Christopher J. Clore are in charge of the prosecution.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
