BOSTON, June 22, 2012—Nicholas Fomby-Davis, snatched off a scooter and murdered at the age of 14, was a “respectful, helpful, smart, and positive young man,” his aunt recalled today as the two gang members who killed him were sentenced to life in prison, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.
Both convicted of first-degree murder yesterday, JOSHUA FERNANDES (D.O.B. 8/8/93) and CRISOSTOMO LOPES (D.O.B. 2/27/90) faced the mandatory term for that offense this morning. Under Massachusetts law, neither will ever be eligible for parole. Fernandes, who was also convicted of unlawfully possessing the firearm that killed Fomby-Davis, was sentenced to a concurrent four- to five-year prison term.
“I will never see my nephew become this wonderful man I knew he would be,” Angela Fomby said during a series of family statements to Suffolk Superior Court Judge Patrick Brady. “All my nephew wanted was to take a joyride on a scooter and your choice was to take his life … Nicholas never did anything bad to anyone and certainly not to these two animals.”
Fomby-Davis’ sister read from an essay the slain boy wrote as part of an application for a summer community program he wanted to attend.
“My strengths are that I am helpful, informative, intelligent, and well-mannered,” the essay read. “What I can contribute to the Summer Leader Program is that I can help everyone get along with each other no matter where we come from, whether it’s the urban areas of Dorchester, Mattapan, or Roxbury or the suburban areas like Canton, Milton, and other towns. I will contribute a positive environment to SLP and will help people work together.”
Speaking last, the victim’s father blasted the deadly feud that took his son’s life even though he had no part in it.
“I’ve been living there since 1970,” he said. “I’ve shown nothing but love for people. And you’re going to do that to my son? Two years older than my son, you should have been showing him how to play basketball or something. When are you going to cut it out? When are you all going to cut it out? We didn’t have anything to do with all that Hatfield and McCoys between the families … We didn’t do nothing wrong, nothing to you, not a damned thing.”
Conley’s top prosecutor, First Assistant District Attorney Patrick Haggan, proved during about two weeks of trial that the slain boy had been riding on the back of a scooter driven by his older brother, then 15, in their neighborhood a short time earlier. At one point during that ride, the older brother – who was not gang-involved and who did not know the defendants – nearly hit Lopes as Lopes rode his bicycle on the same street.
The evidence established that the two brothers rode the scooter home and the older of the two went inside. Fomby-Davis took that opportunity to ride his brother’s scooter around the block.
Meanwhile, video surveillance showed, Lopes and Fernandes had been stalking the area and apparently waiting for the brother’s return. When they spotted Fomby-Davis coming down the street, Lopes snatched him off the scooter and Fernandes fired four shots, hitting the boy twice. Evidence suggested that he might have kept shooting had his gun not jammed.
An off-duty Boston Police officer driving in the area spotted Lopes and Fernandes lurking in the area just before the shooting. They appeared to be waiting for something, looking intensely down Olney Street, and Fernandes appeared to be holding something in his pocket.
Based on his observations and believing – correctly – that they were engaging or preparing to engage in criminal activity, the officer pulled over on Olney Street and watched them. Moments later, as Fomby-Davis entered the Bowdoin Street intersection on his brother’s scooter, the officer watched them pounce on the boy, with Lopes holding him and Fernandes shooting him.
The officer drew his firearm and ordered Fernandes to drop his gun. Fernandes instead put it in his pocket and sprinted off while Lopes pedaled away on his bicycle. The officer pursued him and radioed to other units. Two additional Boston Police officers in the immediate area soon saw Fernandes running on Norton Street, where he ducked behind a car momentarily. Seconds later, the officers took him into custody. Near that car they recovered a .25 caliber semiautomatic handgun that was later shown to be a ballistic match to the weapon that killed Fomby-Davis.
As Fernandes was being arrested, Lopes arrived on his bicycle. The off-duty officer immediately recognized him as the one who had held Fomby-Davis while Fernandes shot him. The officer drew his firearm and ordered him to the ground.
Haggan was second-seated by Assistant District Attorney Janis Noble of Conley’s Appellate Division. Kara Hayes was the DA’s assigned victim-witness advocate. Executive aide Catherine Rodriguez lent logistical assistance throughout the proceedings. Fernandes and Lopes were represented by attorneys Rosemary Scappiccio and Christopher Belezos respectively.
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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
