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Darryl Watson was convicted on 10 counts of the various charges in connection with the Feb. 7, 2019 killing of Fred Sims in Newark's South Ward, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said.
Watson, who was convicted in 2016 for drug distribution, as distributing cocaine and heroin near the Kretchmer Elderly public housing complex when he was captured on surveillance cameras stashing drugs and a firearm in the back wheel of a minivan parked on Carrigan street, Stephens said.
Watson later went back and got the gun from the van, walked toward Sims, and without provocation, shot him in the head. Watson stood over Sims’ body and shot him 10 more times, then fled the scene with the gun.
Following a six-day trial before the Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler, the jury deliberated for an hour before convicting Watson of 10 counts: One count of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, and six drug crimes: possession of a controlled dangerous substance (CDS), possession of CDS with intent to distribute, and possession of CDS (cocaine and heroin) with intent to distribute within 500 feet of a public housing facility.
In a separate trial immediately following the murder conviction, the jury found Watson guilty of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.
Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 30, 2023, before Judge Wigler.
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