Kenrick Gray, 34, was shot in the head around 6:15 p.m., Tuesday outside 140 Park Hill Avenue in Stapleton, police said. His companion, Noland Whistleon, 41, was also shot in the leg and torso and killed in the double homicide.
Gray had recently won a $125,000 settlement against New York City for being wrongly stopped and frisked. One of at least three cops named in the lawsuit was ordered to pay $7,500 out of his own pocket.
That officer Mike Daragjati, 34, was also sentenced to federal prison for extorting $5,000 from someone who he wrongly believed had stolen his commercial snowplow.
While the FBI investigated that case, the cop was caught on a wiretap using racial a epithet and bragging about arresting Gray.
“Fried another n—-r,” he said, according to court records.
Gray recently boasted about his financial windfall all over the city of New York, sources said.
“Mr. Gray recently made known throughout hood that he received the windfall, and that very foolish boast did cost him his life,” a source said. “He has been running his mouth about getting the settlement and apparently the assailant caught wind of that and tried to rob him. There was a struggle and he was shot.”
It was not revealed how many stacks Gray was carrying or whether the suspect finally made off with his cash.
Gray was reportedly a prolific criminal with a thick arrest portfolio. His prior arrests included possession of controlled substances and Whistleon, who was killed in Tuesday’s shooting as well, was about to go on trial in two weeks for allegedly choking and trying to rape a woman Dec. 13, 2012. He was out on $35,000 bail.
Gray just appeared to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was gunned down, sources told the New York Post.
The two men had over 25 prior arrests between them, the newspaper stated.
