A 23-year-old Little Rock man has accepted a 60-year prison sentence for killing two men in holdups about a month apart last year.
Quincy Deterrell "Phat" Braxton pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of first-degree murder, each reduced from capital murder, and two counts of aggravated robbery for the Feb 28 slaying of Gregory Mayo and the March 27 killing of Robert Lewis Rockett, 21, of Benton. Braxton will have to serve 42 years before he can apply for parole.
On Friday, Braxton's co-defendant in the Mayo slaying, 23-year-old Laderric Pierre Conley, also pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, reduced from capital murder, and aggravated robbery in exchange for a 24-year prison sentence. He'll be eligible for parole after serving almost 17 years.
Rockett, a father of one, was fatally shot in the middle of the afternoon in the parking lot of Covenant Kingdom Baptist Church at 2100 S. Tyler St. in Little Rock.
Braxton, who was on probation for a January 2016 residential burglary conviction, was arrested the next day at 1621 S. Elm St. in Little Rock after Chloe Gentry, a woman who had been with Braxton, told police she saw him shoot Rockett.
Braxton initially told police that he had been with Rockett, but that Rockett had shot himself in a fit of despondency, court records show. The men had been friends, and Braxton later admitted to shooting Rockett, police said.
Gentry told police that she had given Braxton a ride to meet Rockett. On the drive, Braxton said that Rockett had a gun that he wanted and that he would kill Rockett if necessary to take it, Gentry told police.
Rockett's fiancee, Sarah Egan, told police that he had left their home a couple of hours before the shooting, after getting a phone call. Rockett told her he was going to meet someone named Quincy, she said.
Mayo, a father of one, was found shot dead in his home on West 29th Street by a friend who had gone to check on him. He'd been shot in the head, his house had been ransacked and his car was missing.
Conley's fingerprints were found in the residence, and he was arrested April 14. Court files show that he told investigators that Mayo had been an acquaintance of Braxton's. Conley said he and Braxton had gone to the house to rob Mayo and that Braxton had shot the man.
Braxton, who was already in jail in the Rockett murder, was charged with Mayo's slaying a week after Conley's arrest. Braxton told police that he had been at the Mayo home with his brother, Quinton Braxton, and Conley, according to court records. He said he shot Mayo and then made his brother and Conley load items from the home into the victim's vehicle.
Quincy Braxton and Conley had been arrested together before, court records show. On Oct. 7, 2014, when they were both 18-year-old Hall High School students, they were arrested with five other students after a brawl at the school cafeteria during which Principal Larry Schleicher and Assistant Principal Tom Noble were assaulted. Quincy Braxton and Conley were the only two old enough to be charged as adults.
According to a police report, the incident began when one of the arrested students punched Quincy Braxton, and the pair started to fight. The student said he fought with Braxton because Braxton had threatened to shoot him the day before.
Metro on 02/02/2019