FAR ROCKAWAY MAN FOUND GUILTY OF MURDERING MAN OVER A MATTRESS

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced today the conviction of a Far Rockaway man for the murder of a Beach Channel Drive resident over a mattress purchased by the deceased from the defendant's girlfriend.

District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Rufus Spears, 25, of 438 Beach 40th Street, Far Rockaway. He was convicted of murder in the second degree after a two week jury trial before Supreme Court Justice Randall Eng. He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 8 and faces up to 25 years to life in prison.

District Attorney Brown said: "This was a senseless crime in which the defendant killed the victim presumably out of a false pride because the victim had purchased bedroom furnishings from the defendant's girlfriend. The crime was also extremely brutal in that the victim had been shot several times and then for good measure shot in the head at very close range with the distinct intent of killing the victim."

According to trial testimony, on December 5, 1996, the defendant was arrested in possession of drugs at the home of his girlfriend. The defendant's girlfriend then proceeded to sell items from her apartment in order to help the defendant. The victim, Arthur Bernard Pitts, expressed an interest in her mattress and box springs set and bought them from the woman. This enraged the defendant and on January 3, 1997, the defendant and another man, Fred Parker, 19, of 339 Beach 47th Street, Far Rockaway, who is awaiting trial, went to the apartment building of the victim, Arthur Bernard Pitts, at 38-08 Beach Channel Drive in the projects known as the "40's", and met the victim who was returning to the building after picking up his dry cleaning. Spears challenged the victim as to why he had wanted to buy the furniture from the defendant's girlfriend. The conversation was observed by a witness who lives in the same building. The victim and the defendant then got on one elevator and the witness got on an adjoining elevator. She went to the twelfth floor and on her way out heard shots. The injured victim and Spears got off the elevator and apparently were met by Parker on the eighth floor. The witness went to her mother for help and then got back on the elevator which opened on the eighth floor where she saw that the police had already arrived. The victim was allegedly shot with a .357 magnum by Spears and with a .25 caliber pistol by Parker. The victim sustained injuries to his neck and spine with the fatal bullet entering the left side of his brain and exiting from the right side of his head.

Assistant District Attorney David W. Guy of the Queens District Attorney's Homicide Trials Bureau under the supervision of Bureau Chief Daniel A. Saunders and the overall supervision of Executive District Attorney Greg L. Lasak prosecuted the case.