Providence man gets life in prison for 2007 murder

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Attorney General Peter Neronha said that a Providence man has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in a gang-related 2007 murder.

Jayquan Garlington was given the sentence alongside a 10-year suspended sentence in connection with the death of 18-year-old Darren Reagans, who was stabbed to death outside of a Providence nightclub more than 15 years ago.

Garlington was found guilty in May.

Neronha said that the victim, who was a member of the gang “Comstock,” was waiting outside the club when Garlington and fellow members of the gang “YNIC” approached him, exchanged words, and attacked.

The attack spilled over into an adjacent parking lot, where Reagans collapsed from a stab wound. He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital were he died a short time later.

Neronha said the cause of death was determined to be a stab wound to the chest that pierced the victim’s heart.

During the trial prosecutors argued that a  rap lyric written by the defendant referenced and admitted to the murder.

Garlington was indicted for the murder in 2017.