October 07, 2023
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
Common Pleas Court Judge Charles Ehrlich sentenced Hanef Wilkins, 22, and Yameen Mofield, 21 for the fatal shooting of Rasul Benson at a South Philadelphia gas station in 2018.
A Philadelphia judge sentenced two men to 45 to 90 years in prison in connection to the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy in 2018.
Hanef Wilkins, 22, and Yameen Mofield, 21, were convicted of third-degree murder and related charges for the killing of Rasul Benson at a South Philly Gulf gas station by Common Pleas Court Judge Charles Ehrlich on Friday.
Mofield and Wilkins are the latest men to be charged in an investigation by the District Attorney's Gun Violence Task Force for their roles in violent conflicts involving groups affiliated with the 31st Street, 27th Street, and Wilson Park gangs.
"Practically five years since young Rasul Benson was ripped from the earth and away from his future, the Philadelphia criminal courts today delivered a measure of justice to his still-grieving, forever traumatized family," Gun Violence Task Force Chief William Fritze said.
The investigation was aided by the Philadelphia Police Department, the Office of the Attorney General, and other law enforcement partners.
On Thursday, Oct. 4, 2018, Benson and two friends pulled into the gas station located at 25th Street and Passyunk Avenue when another car pulled up, and a person with a gun began chasing one of Benson's friends, the Inquirer reported.
During the 10-day trial last June, surveillance video showed a second shooter who fired a gun from the backseat of the car that pulled up at the gas station.
At least 16 shots rang off at the station; all three boys were shot, NBC 10 reported the day after the shooting.
Benson and two other people died due to conflict between the gangs over the years, and at least 30 more people were wounded by gunfire, the District Attorney's Office said.
