California man sentenced for pickaxe murder of disabled teen brother
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A California man was sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to using a pickaxe to kill his teenage stepbrother, who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair.
Zuberi Sharp, 26, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to the second-degree murder of his 15-year-old half-brother Zayde in March, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
He also admitted several specific allegations and aggravating factors, including causing grievous bodily harm, using a weapon in the commission of the crime and that the victim was defenseless.
On Dec. 5, 2024, deputies were called to a home in the 400 block of Jeanne Court in Newbury Park shortly after 8 p.m., after Zayde’s mother called 911 reporting 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 attacked Zayde with a pickaxe in a backyard shed.
The teenager’s uncle heard a loud noise and ran into the shed to check on the two brothers. He observed Sharp standing over Zayde with a pickaxe in his hand.
Zayde was pronounced dead shortly after being taken to hospital.
Sharp, meanwhile, fled the scene and was later found at nearby Newbury Park High School, where deputies detained him after receiving reports of a man acting erratically on the football field, authorities said.
The victim’s mother reported that Zuberi attacked Zayde with a pickaxe in a backyard shed. (Getty Images)
The incident caused a quarantine because student-athletes were on the field when he arrived.
“This sentence reflects the seriousness of a violent and senseless act against a defenseless victim,” Senior Deputy District Attorney David Russell said in a press release. he said. “While nothing can restore this loss, it ensures that the defendant is held accountable and the victim’s family is spared the trauma of the trial.”
Investigators never revealed a motive for the attack, but family members told KTLA they believed Sharp was going through 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 meat cleaver in 2007. (Thousand Oaks Police Department)
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“It’s difficult,” Zayde’s mother had previously told the press at a ceremony honoring her son. “It was really hard. I was in pain every day.”
Sharp is also the son of convicted murderer Calvin Sharp, who killed a 6-year-old boy with a cleaver in 2007. Sharp admitted murder and was sentenced to life in prison.
Fox News Digital reached out to Sharp’s legal team. The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office directed investigations into Tuesday’s press release.
