On a summer evening in 2015, the life of 33-year-old Icrish Bostic was tragically cut short in a burst of violence that stemmed from a dispute with a childhood friend. Bostic, a male from Irvington, New Jersey, became involved in a heated verbal argument that escalated into a physical fight on July 15, 2015. The altercation took place on a busy public street, where numerous civilians were present.
The man he fought with was 34-year-old Mario Gayles of Newark, someone Bostic had grown up
with and even lived with at one point. After their physical confrontation ended, Gayles left the scene for a brief period, only to return with a handgun. He then opened fire on an unarmed Bostic, shooting him a total of eleven times in the head, upper torso, and legs. Even as Bostic lay helpless on the sidewalk, Gayles continued to fire at him from close range.
Following the fatal shooting, Gayles fled to Pennsylvania in an attempt to evade capture. However, law enforcement officials were able to track him down and arrest him. Despite his initial claims of not being in the area at the time of the incident, the testimony of numerous witnesses contradicted his account. In September 2017, an Essex County jury convicted Gayles of murder and weapons charges. Subsequently, in January 2018, he was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his longtime friend. The judge noted Gayles' extensive criminal history, which included a prior conviction for reckless manslaughter, as a factor in the sentencing.
