DETROIT, MI — James Deshawn Williams was sentenced to two federal life terms on Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Terrence Berg for his involvement in the murder-for-hire of Nikolla Berishaj, 33, and a related conspiracy charge. The sentence follows Williams’ conviction in a three-day trial that concluded last October.
Williams, who was convicted of using interstate commercial facilities for the commission of murder-for-hire, played a key role in the fatal shooting of Berishaj in the early hours of November 9, 2016, in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Berishaj was shot in the chest while seated in his truck near his residence at Golfpointe Village condominiums on Plumbrook and Schoenherr roads. He later succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Court documents revealed that Williams was also sentenced to 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit a murder-for-hire in a separate incident in Detroit. In this case, Williams and his co-conspirators mistakenly targeted the wrong man after following him from a barbershop, leading to a shooting in which the intended victim survived.
Williams had been previously acquitted of the actual murder-for-hire charge in the Detroit incident. However, his conviction in the Berishaj case was supported by evidence presented during the trial.
In addition to these life sentences, Williams is already serving a 15-year federal prison term after pleading guilty in 2019 to felony charges involving firearms. He was convicted for shooting a man twice in the head at a nightclub in Detroit in October 2014. The shooting stemmed from an altercation involving stolen narcotics, though the victim survived. Later, in a separate incident, Williams was involved in another shooting that occurred while the victim attempted to flee on a motorcycle.
Williams’ history of violent crimes and his role in orchestrating two murders has earned him a reputation for involvement in dangerous criminal activities. He was remanded to the custody of federal marshals following the sentencing.
The convictions and sentences mark the culmination of an extensive investigation and legal process aimed at holding Williams accountable for his actions.
