Man gets prison for drug shooting
NORRISTOWN » A Lower Pottsgrove man who bragged to the man he shot about racking up a “body count” is on his way to state prison in connection with the Pottstown shooting that stemmed from a dispute about $40 worth of crack co- caine.
Aykee Maleke “Sleepy” Scott, 22, of the 1400 block of Walnut Ridge Estates, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court on Tuesday to 3½ to seven years in state
prison after he pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault and persons not to possess a firearm in connection with incidents that occurred over a threeday period in July 2016.
The sentence was imposed by Judge Gary S. Silow, who accepted a plea agreement in the matter.
Assistant District Attorney Richard Bradbury Jr. sought state prison time against Scott.
“Here he is shooting someone else over a drug issue. We took that very seriously and
thought it was very important that he be sentenced accordingly,” said Bradbury, captain of the year-old Pottstown Community Prosecution Unit.
“The importance of the sentence is it illustrates how gun crime in Pottstown will not be tolerated. The Pottstown Borough Police will find you, they’ll build a strong case against you, as they did here, and because of that you’re going to go to state prison,” Bradbury added.
Scott was represented by defense lawyer Keith Harbison.
“Mr. Scott is remorseful and regrets what he did. He accepts responsibility and
was interested in resolving his case today,” Harbison said on Scott’s behalf.
The shooting occurred about 3:42 a.m. July 24 in the 400 block of North Evans Street.
An investigation began when Pottstown police were dispatched to the area of North Evans and West streets for witness reports of “two loud bangs” in the area. When police arrived on the scene they found a male suffering from a gunshot wound to his left arm and he was transported to a local hospital for treatment, according to the affidavit of probable cause filed by borough Detective Heather Long.
The victim later told detectives
that he was in the area of Beech and Evans streets when he was confronted by a man he knows as “Sleepy.”
“The confrontation was regarding a dispute about $40 worth of crack,” Long alleged. “Sleepy told the victim that ‘his body count is six and he isn’t playing with (expletives) no more.’”
“Sleepy then shot the victim, who then fled after sustaining a gunshot wound to his left arm,” Long added.
The victim described the gun used by the shooter as possibly a .45-caliber or 9 mm firearm, according to court documents.
During the investigation, detectives learned that
“Sleepy” operated a silver Dodge Neon vehicle with a dented trunk and on July 27 police conducted a traffic stop of that vehicle in the borough and Scott was the driver and sole occupant, according to the criminal complaint.
A search of the vehicle’s trunk uncovered nine clear capsules of an off-white, rock-like substance, a .22-caliber revolver and a bag containing seven .22-caliber rounds, according to the criminal complaint.
“Through my training and experience, I know the offwhite, rock-like substance to be consistent with crack cocaine. A field test of the offwhite, rock-like substance
came back positive for containing cocaine,” Long alleged.
The victim subsequently identified Scott, in a photo array, as the man who shot him, according to the criminal complaint.
Prosecutors said Scott has a previous conviction for aggravated assault that prohibits him from possessing a firearm. Court records show Scott served a 9-to-23month jail term for the previous conviction in connection with a July 2014 incident in Pottstown and was on probation and parole at the time of the July 24 shooting.
Additionally, Scott did not have a valid permit to carry a firearm, detectives alleged.