Today's sentencing at the Queens Supreme Court marked the end of a tragic case that shook the Springfield Gardens community last year. In an event that captured local headlines, Rayvon Phillip, 19, was handed a 21-year prison term for the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Akim Cisse. The news, outlined by the Queens District Attorney's Office, details that Phillip, associated with the BG4 gang and known by the moniker “Ray-G,” pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the first degree on July 14, after originally being accused of the crime in September 2024.
Phillip's sentencing follows a guilty plea earlier this month, which was the culminating effort of the Violent Criminal Enterprise Bureau to quickly build a strong case. Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz has expressed relief at the conviction, stating, “This defendant indiscriminately fired into a car filled with people, killing Akim Cisse who had just celebrated his 18th birthday. I thank members of my Violent Criminal Enterprise Bureau for building a strong case against this defendant, leading to a guilty plea. We hope today’s sentencing brings a measure of closure to the victim’s loved ones..” This shooting incident took place on September 27, 2024, outside a McDonald’s on South Conduit Avenue, where Phillip was reported to have shot multiple times into a vehicle harbouring Cisse and three others, as reported by the Queens District Attorney's Office.
Justice Kenneth Holder delivered the sentence today, accenting 21 years of incarceration to be followed by five years of post-release supervision. According to the charges, Phillip fired approximately three times into the gray Nissan Altima that Cisse and his companions were in, with Cisse sustaining a fatal shot to the back of the head. The severity of the incident left Cisse in critical condition, and despite medical intervention, he lost brain function and passed away hours later at a local hospital.
The prosecution was led by Assistant District Attorney Andres Sanchez, with oversight from senior members of the bureau, including Bureau Chief Jonathan Sennett and Deputy Chief Barry Frankenstein, all under the executive leadership of Gerard Brave.
