Wilmington man sentenced to 30 years for murder

Yusra Asif, Delaware News Journal
·2 min read

A Wilmington man who fired into a crowd, killing a 66-year-old, was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Prosecutors said that Nazir Henry was out looking for rivals of his gang in July 2019 when he opened fire toward a crowd on the 700 block of W. Fourth St. in Wilmington. The gunfire left Terry Wise dead, according to court documents.

Henry was in a vehicle with a friend and two girls, according to prosecutors, as he passed by the crowd and asked the driver to make a U-turn "so he could go back and shoot at people he saw driving by."

In July 2020, he was indicted on murder charges in the death of Wise in New Castle County Superior Court, according to court documents.

Henry, 21, accepted a plea deal for the murder along with felony charges stemming from assault, robbery and possession of a firearm, court records show.

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In court, his attorney argued that Henry was protecting himself. But prosecutors said no one from the crowd shot at him first and that Henry, who was 19 at the time, initiated the firing to shoot rival gang members using a "get them before they get me" gang mentality.

He was a member of the Shoot To Kill gang in Wilmington, prosecutors said, a gang authorities have blamed for a series of shootings and deaths over the past few years.

Last month's sentencing adds onto Henry's criminal record that dates back to when he was 12.

Less than two weeks after he fatally shot Wise, Henry fired at a 16-year-old in Wilmington's Browntown neighborhood, court records show.

He was charged with shooting and injuring the teen two weeks later, when police caught him in connection with a separate shooting incident at a house party, according to court documents.

Henry was arrested after he fled the scene and his vehicle flipped over and crashed into nearby cars during the police-chase.
Henry was arrested after he fled the scene and his vehicle flipped over and crashed into nearby cars during the police-chase.

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Henry has since been in prison, court documents show.

All other remaining charges and pending cases against him were dropped by the state.

Contact Yusra Qureshi at yasif@delawareonline.com.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Wilmington man sentenced to 30 years for murder