Photo: Harry Wedzinga / iStock / Getty Images
A white man who said he deserved a "medal of honor" for killing his Black neighbor in Maryland over a dispute about loud music has been sentenced, per The Root.
Nicholas Francis Giroux, 37, pleaded guilty in February to first-degree murder and use of a firearm in a crime of violence for the June 17, 2024, shooting of 27-year-old Isaiah Olugbemi, a rising amateur boxer and recent Golden Gloves national champion.
Anne Arundel County police responded to a shooting and found Olugbemi with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to the hospital, where he later died, just three weeks after winning the 203-pound division at the national championships.
Surveillance footage showed Giroux approaching Olugbemi and shooting him several times. After the victim collapsed, Giroux returned and fired three more shots before walking back to his townhome and fleeing the scene in a van.
In a recorded jailhouse call played during court proceedings, Giroux showed no remorse for the killing.
“That’s what happens when you f*** with my sleep schedule. You don’t wake up,” he said.
Two weeks before the murder, Giroux had complained about loud music at a family cookout and allegedly brandished a handgun, though he was not arrested at the time. Giroux later accused the Olugbemi family of being drug dealers, claiming the state was better off without his neighbor.
“I still want my medal of honor,” Giroux said on another call.
On Tuesday (August 26), Giroux was sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years.
State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess called the crime “cruel and senseless,” adding, “The callousness and lack of remorse on the part of this Defendant is really disturbing. He deserves this sentence.”
The Black Information Network is your source for Black News! Get the latest news 24/7 on The Black Information Network. Listen now on the iHeartRadio app or click HERE to tune in live.