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A California man was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after pleading guilty to the pickaxe murder of his teenage half-brother, who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair.
Zuberi Sharp, 26, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty in March to the second-degree murder of his 15-year-old half-brother, Zayde, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
He also admitted several special allegations and aggravating factors, including that he inflicted great bodily injury, that he used a weapon in the commission of the crime and that the victim was vulnerable.
On December 5, 2024, officers were called to a home in the 400 block of Jeanne Court in Newbury Park shortly after 8 p.m. following a 911 call from Zayde’s mother, who reported that her son had been hit in the head with an object.
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Zuberi Sharp was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. (Ventura County District Attorney’s Office)
The victim’s mother reported that Sharp had attacked Zayde with a pickaxe inside a shed in the backyard.
The teen’s uncle heard a loud bang and ran to the shed to check on the two brothers. He looked at Sharp standing next to Zayde while holding a pickaxe.
Zayde was rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving.
Meanwhile, Sharp fled the scene and was later found at nearby Newbury Park High School, where officers detained him after receiving reports of a man acting erratically on the football field, authorities said.
The victim’s mother reported that Zuberi had attacked Zayde with a pickaxe inside a shed in the backyard. (Getty Images)
The incident forced a shutdown, as student-athletes were on the field when it arrived.
“This sentence reflects the severity of a senseless and violent act against a vulnerable victim,” Deputy District Attorney David Russell said in a news release. “While nothing can reverse this loss, it ensures that the defendant is held accountable and that the victim’s family has been spared the trauma of a trial.”
Investigators never revealed a motive for the attack, but family members told KTLA they believed Sharp was having a manic episode at the time.
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Zuberi is also the son of convicted murderer Calvin Sharp, who killed a 6-year-old boy with a butcher knife in 2007. (Thousand Oaks Police Department)
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“It’s hard,” Zayde’s mother previously told the outlet at a ceremony honoring her son. “It’s been very hard. Pain every day.”
Sharp is also the son of convicted murderer Calvin Sharp, who killed a 6-year-old boy with a butcher knife in 2007. He was convicted of the murder and sentenced to life in prison.
Fox News Digital has contacted Sharp’s legal team. The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office led investigations to Tuesday’s news release.