A Delaware man has pleaded guilty to a 2015 murder that kicked off a deadly gang war in Wilmington, authorities announced Thursday.
Oliver Henry, 25, admitted to killing 16-year-old Jordan Ellerbe in January 2015. Ellerbe’s death set off a years-long conflict between two street gangs, though he was not part of either group, according to authorities.
“The number of young lives thrown away so that guns can live in our communities with our kids is horrifying,” Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings said Thursday in a statement. “The devastation that Jordan’s murder caused to his family, to say nothing of the subsequent carnage it caused in our city, is immeasurable.”
Prosecutors will recommend a 20-year prison sentence at Henry’s sentencing hearing in exchange for his guilty plea, according to Jennings’ office. He faces a minimum of 15 years behind bars.
Ellerbe was sitting on a porch with friends in Wilmington when Henry opened fire on the group. Investigators said Ellerbe was not the target of the shooting.
Two other teenagers were wounded in the gunfire. Henry was also charged with attempted murder in their cases.
Though Ellerbe was not the target and not a gang member, his death inspired open conflict between the Shoot to Kill and Only My Brothers gangs in Wilmington, according to police. Another teenager even younger than Ellerbe, 15-year-old Brandon Wingo, was killed in the gang war.
Henry was arrested in January 2023 and charged with Ellerbe’s murder.
“This murder fueled unacceptable levels of gun violence in and around Wilmington, and it also left behind a family that has been waiting for answers, and justice,” Wilmington Police Chief Wilfredo Campos said after the arrest.
