Zuberi Sharp pleads guilty to using pickaxe to murder his half-brother with cerebral palsy

VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – Zuberi Kalaikulokahiokalani Sharp pled guilty this week to the 2024 second-degree murder of his 15-year-old half half-brother Zayde with a pickaxe.

Sharp also admitted to the special allegation that he personally inflicted great bodily injury and the aggravating factors that he used a weapon to commit the crime and his half-brother was particularly vulnerable shared the Ventura County District Attorney's Office in a press release Wednesday.

On Dec. 5, 2024, around 8 p.m., the victim's mother called 911 to report that her son had attacked his half-brother inside of a converted backyard shed with a pickaxe stated the local prosecutor's office.

Deputies arrived at the home in the 400 block of Jeanne Court to find the mother holding Zayde in her lap and that Zuberi Sharp had already fled the scene detailed the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

Zayde was transported from the scene and was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival at a local hospital shared the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

Zayde's uncle told investigators he went to check on the half-brothers after learning they were alone in the converted shed and heard a loud thud as he approached noted the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

According to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office, the uncle entered the shed and found Zuberi standing over his half brother who suffers from cerebral palsy while holding a pickaxe.

Later the same day, deputies received reports of a man acting erratically on the football field at Newbury Park High School and arrived to find Zuberi naked in the field before taking him into custody explained the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

Sharp is currently scheduled to be sentenced on May 5 of this year where he faces 15 years to life in state prison.

He remains in custody without bail added the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.

"This is an unimaginable tragedy for a family that has already endured so much," said Senior Deputy District Attorney David Russell who prosecuted the case. "While nothing can undo the loss of Zayde, this resolution spares his loved ones from having to relive these horrific events through a lengthy and painful jury trial."