Nicholas Giroux, 37, was found guilty of killing Nigerian-American boxer Isaiah Olugbemi in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, and was given a life sentence plus 20 years in jail.
Judge Richard Trunnell of the Anne Arundel County Circuit Court sentenced Giroux on Friday afternoon after he entered a guilty plea to first-degree murder and use of a firearm in a crime of violence, according to a press release from the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office that PUNCH Online cited on Saturday. In the Division of Corrections, the sentences must run consecutively.
Olugbemi, 27, who was described as a rising star in amateur boxing and a father, was shot multiple times by Giroux on June 17, 2024, in the 500 block of Meadowmist Way, Odenton.
Police said the victim was found with several gunshot wounds and later died at R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. An autopsy ruled the death a homicide by gunfire.
Surveillance footage from the scene showed Giroux approaching Olugbemi, shooting him repeatedly until he fell, and then firing three more rounds before fleeing. Police recovered 9mm cartridge casings at the scene.
Investigators said Giroux had previously confronted the victim and a neighbour during a cookout about two weeks earlier, brandishing a handgun but not pointing it.
After the murder, he confessed during questioning and led authorities to the location of the firearm used.
State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess described the killing as “cruel and senseless,” noting that Olugbemi had a promising future in boxing.
She said, “Mr. Olugbemi was a father and a rising star in amateur boxing. The callousness and lack of remorse on the part of this Defendant is really disturbing. He deserves this sentence. And to the family and friends of Mr. Olugbemi, I hope that today provides some sense of justice for this terrible ordeal.
“The callousness and lack of remorse on the part of this Defendant is really disturbing. He deserves this sentence. And to the family and friends of Mr. Olugbemi, I hope that today provides some sense of justice.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant State’s Attorney Carolynn Grammas, while homicide detectives with the Anne Arundel County Police Department led the investigation.