District Attorney Announces Sentencing Of Last Defendant In Roxborough Football Murder
by Alex Lloyd Gross
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner announced that Zaakir McClendon is going to prison for the next 40-80 years for the murder of Nicolas Elizalde, the wounding of four other children outside Roxborough High School in 2022 and for fatally shooting 16-year-old Nafis Betrand-Hill in April 2023.
McClendon entered a guilty plea to two different counts of third-degree murder charges. He was sentenced by the Honorable Scott O’Keefe. McClendon was the sixth and final defendant arrested for the Roxborough High School mass shooting on September 27, 2022 and the third defendant arrested for the murder of Nafis Betrand-Hill in North Philadelphia on April 13, 2023.
In addition to two counts of third-degree murder, McClendon pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit murder, four counts of attempted murder and related crimes.
Elizalde was leaving a football scrimmage at the Roxborough school stadium when he was gunned down in a hail of gunfire. Security video showed McClendon and other defendants running away after the shooting.