FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, February 19, 2026
Contact: comms@ncdoj.gov
919-538-2809
RALEIGH – Today, Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced that Frederick Johnson was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 2022 death of Derek Sterling. Judge Timothy Wilson sentenced Johnson to life in prison without parole. In addition, Johnson was sentenced to a consecutive term of 14-32 months for a charge of conspiracy to discharge a firearm within an enclosure to incite fear.
“This violent murderer will spend life in prison for his crimes,” said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. “My office will always work with law enforcement to get dangerous criminals off our streets and keep our communities safe.”
The Department of Justice’s Special Prosecutions Section prosecuted the case after it was referred by Durham District Attorney Satana Deberry. The Durham Police Department led the criminal investigation of this case.
According to the evidence presented at trial, on the evening of August 30, 2022, Johnson pulled up next to Derek Sterling in a Durham parking lot on Hillsborough Road. He fired two shots at Sterling and fled the scene. The victim, a U.S. Navy veteran, ran into a nearby store where he collapsed and was pronounced dead at the scene. Johnson drove to a residence, where he was captured on a camera stating that he used a handgun to shoot someone, and the victim ran off after he was shot. The Durham Police Department arrested and charged Johnson a few days later. Experts in the case from the Durham Police Department, FBI, and State Crime Lab provided testimony.
The case marked the first time a FARO scan, a precise 3D mapping tool of the crime scene, was admitted into evidence from usage by the Durham Police Department.
###