Jury Convicted Defendant in 2017 Shooting
Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that a Bronx man has been
sentenced to 45 years to life in prison after a jury convicted him for second-degree Murder,
Attempted Murder in the second degree, and second-degree Criminal Possession of a Weapon in
the shooting of two men in 2017.
District Attorney Clark said, “The defendant caused the death of a young man and shot the
surviving victim in the face and chest. I hope the jury’s verdict, and this prison sentence, send a
clear message that we will not tolerate gun violence.”
District Attorney Clark said the defendant, Divine Fredericks, 29, of 525 Rosedale Avenue,
was sentenced today to 45 years to life in prison by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Margaret
Clancy. He was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for second-degree Murder, 20 years to life
in prison for the Attempted Murder charge, to be served consecutively, and 16 years to life in
prison for the Criminal Possession of Weapon charge, to be served concurrently. He was found
guilty by a jury on June 13, 2019.
According to the investigation, about 4 a.m. on July 1, 2017, inside an SUV on
Commonwealth Avenue, the defendant shot Tyreek Simmons in the back of the head, causing his
death, and shot Tyric Butler in the face. The defendant then fired shots into the vehicle, striking
Butler in the chest. The defendant then fled to Georgia and was arrested approximately a month
after the incident.
District Attorney Clark thanked NYPD Detective Felix Delcarpio, BXDA Detective
Investigators Anthony Saldarriaga and Nicholas Cavalcanti for their assistance in the
investigation.
