CLINTON HILL — A jury has convicted a gunman who murdered a Grand Avenue man who tried to stop him stealing a bag of grapes, prosecutors said.
Victorious Kingsberry, 20, was found guilty of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon after the March 2014 death of 57-year-old Gilbert Kelly. He faces up to 25 years to life behind bars at his sentencing on Dec. 22.
“Though he had few material possessions, Gilbert Kelly had a generous heart and died defending the block that he loved, Grand Avenue," said Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson in a statement.
"With the conviction of his killer and the long prison sentence that he faces, justice was done."
Kingsberry, then 18, exited a subway station at Washington Avenue and Fulton Street with five of his friends on their way home from a party around 4:30 a.m. March 15 when he swiped a bag of grapes from a fruit stand.
Kelly, who was known for sweeping the neighborhood’s streets at night while singing old Motown songs, confronted them about the grapes.
An argument followed in which Kelly pulled out a kitchen knife, prompting Kingsberry to take out a handgun and shoot Kelly in the chest before running off. Kelly died en route to the hospital.
Called the “protector” of the block by neighbors, Kelly moved to the neighborhood in 1984. He spent time in prison in the 1990s following a drug conviction, according to Changing New York, which profiled him in 2011.
Kingsberry was arrested more than a month after the shooting. He has a long criminal record, including 15 prior arrests for crimes including grand larceny, burglary, trespassing, jumping turnstiles and, most recently, for criminal possession of a loaded weapon on Feb. 28, police said.
