Isaiah Oludayo Olugbemi

By Zak Failla From Daily Voice

The gunman who shot and killed rising Maryland boxer Oludayo Olugbemi will spend the rest of his life in prison.

Nicholas Francis Giroux, 37, of Odenton, was sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years for the murder of the 27-year-old Olugbemi, who was killed last year in cold blood, according to the Anne Arundel County State's Attorney's Office.

Specifically, Giroux pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and use of a firearm in a crime of violence in February for the apparently targeted shooting.

Multiple residents in the neighborhood reported shots fired at approximately 9:45 p.m. on Monday, June 17, 2024, in the area of Meadowmist Way and Stehlik Drive, and responding officers from the Anne Arundel County Police Department found Olugbemi suffering from gunshot wounds.

The famed fighter was rushed to the University of Maryland R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center, where he later was pronounced dead.

At the crime scene, officers recovered surveillance video footage that captured the shooting incident, prosecutors said. 

Giroux can be seen approaching the victim on Meadowmist Way and shooting him multiple times with a handgun until the victim fell to the ground. 

He then returned to fire three additional shots. 

Giroux fled to his nearby townhome before getting into a van and leaving the area. Investigators recovered 9mm cartridge casings from the scene.

According to the state's attorney's office, more than two weeks before the murder, Giroux confronted Olugbemi and a next-door neighbor while they were having a cookout and playing music in the neighbor’s backyard. 

At the time he displayed a handgun but because he hadn’t pointed it, no arrest was made.

According to officials, "several residents from the neighborhood reported hearing multiple gunshots coming from outside their homes. 

"Investigators believe this to be a targeted incident and not a random act of violence." 

An autopsy was performed by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) in Baltimore and the death was ruled a homicide by gunfire.

Following his death, Olugbemi was remembered for his impressive boxing career and compassion for his young son, who was a fixture with him at the gym, according to friends and loved ones.

Before his death, he had recently won the National Golden Gloves Championship, and was planning to ditch his amateur status to turn pro.

"My heart breaks for his young son, who he used to bring to the gym quite often," Jim Hook wrote in a heartfelt post on Facebook. 

"His son would have the best time as nearly every dude in the gym would take turns chasing him around," he continued. "It was only a few days ago that I got to hold him up in the air as he did sets of pull-ups."

"To the DMV boxing world, we have been informed that our only male 2024 national Golden Gloves Champion Isaiah Olugbemi was unfortunately killed last night to gun violence in Anne Arundel County," DMV Boxing Legends posted on social media.

"We send our condolences to his family. May the ancestors welcome him with open arms." 

"I’ll miss his humor, like challenging the young Marines to pull up competitions or reminding me that I was his good luck charm since he never lost a fight where I attended," Jim Hook added in his tribute. 

"When he was finished working out you could hear his laugh pretty much anywhere in the gym.

"Most of all I will just miss my friend." 

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