District Man Pleads Guilty to Murder Charge
In 2009 Slaying of Neighborhood Rival
- Shooting Took Place in Northwest Washington -

     WASHINGTON - Nathaniel Grey, 21, of Washington, D.C., has pled guilty to killing a neighborhood rival in May 2009 in an attack that took place in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced today.

     Grey pled guilty on February 17, 2012 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to a charge of second-degree murder while armed. The plea agreement, which is subject to the Court’s approval, calls for a sentencing range of between 18 and 22 years in prison. The Honorable Thomas J. Motley set a hearing for May 4, 2012. If the judge accepts the plea agreement, sentencing will take place on that date.

     According to the government’s evidence, on May 14, 2009, at about 9:35 p.m., the victim, Brandon Scott, was seated near a row of steps on a covered elevated walkway running parallel to the sidewalk in front of the McCollough Paradise Garden Apartments, in the area of the 1100 block of 7th Street NW. Mr. Scott, 21, was there with a female friend.

     Grey, wearing a dark-colored hooded jacket, approached Mr. Scott. As the victim’s female friend ran away, Grey shot Mr. Scott several times with a handgun, hitting Mr. Scott in the head and lower back areas. Mr. Scott subsequently died of the injuries. The murder occurred because of rivalries between residents of 7th Street NW and residents of 5th Street, NW.

     In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Detectives Konstantinos “Gus” Giannakoulias, James Wilson, Thomas Webb, Robert Cephas, Anthony Greene, Norma Horne, Eric Fenton, and Joshua Branson. He also praised the work of MPD Crime Scene Technicians Kevin Jeter, Keith Slaughter, Carmen Pagan, and Brenda Floyd, as well as Officer Thomas Ellingsworth. Mr. Machen further thanked Victim Advocate Marcey Rinker, Paralegal Phaylyn Hunt, Information Technology Specialist Kimberly Smith, Supervisory Information Technology Specialist Joseph Calvarese, Security Specialists LaVerne Forrest, Debra Cannon, and Tanya Via, and Supervisory Security Specialist Michael Hailey. Finally, he commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez, who investigated and indicted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erin Lyons and David Gorman, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

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