Mattapan man sentenced in 2020 fatal shooting after pleading guilty mid-trial
BOSTON, May 19, 2025 – A Mattapan man will serve up to 24 years in state prison after being sentenced today in the fatal 2020 shooting of a 49-year-old Dorchester man, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced.
YALIEK ALLAH-BARNES, 42, pleaded guilty mid-trial to manslaughter for the fatal shooting of Derek Fitzpatrick, 49, in the area of Bernard Street in Dorchester shortly after 12:00 p.m. on May 18, 2020.
Testimony began in Allah-Barnes’s trial before a Suffolk County jury on May 2. Allah-Barnes changed his plea to guilty on May 5.
Judge Mary Ames sentenced Allah-Barnes to 17-24 years in prison.
On the morning of May 18, Allah-Barnes drove by Fitzpatrick as he was parking his car on Bernard Street. Allah-Barnes continued past Fitzpatrick and turned onto an adjacent street. After parking his car, Allah-Barnes walked up to the front porch of 45 Bernard Street and fired multiple shots, striking Fitzpatrick. Allah-Barnes returned to his car and immediately drove off. Boston police detectives arrested Allah-Barnes on May 21, 2020.
Several of Fitzpatrick’s family members delivered victim impact statements, including his aunt, who shared that the family often met for Bible study at the Bernard Street home.
Fitzpatrick’s father spoke of his pride for his son, saying he was “quite a community worker,” and that “he was taking senior citizens to church, picking them up Sundays.”
Hayden thanked Fitzpatrick’s family for sharing their fond memories.
“These statements served as both a touching remembrance of Derek Fitzpatrick and a testament to how deeply he is missed by those who knew and loved him. I thank Mr. Fitzpatrick’s family for sharing their special memories and I thank the investigators, prosecutors and victim witness advocates who worked to secure a measure of justice for his tragic death,” Hayden said.
All charged individuals are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Mass. The office handles over 20,000 cases a year. More than 160 attorneys in the office practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Courts. The office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs to serve anyone who comes in contact with the criminal justice system. This office is committed to educating the public about the services we provide, our commitment to crime prevention, and our dedication to keeping the residents of Suffolk County safe.
James Borghesani, Chief of Communications