(WNY News Now) – A 74-year-old Buffalo man has been sentenced for the 2018 killing of Ray Thompson following years of postponed court proceedings due to mental competency evaluations.
Erie County District Attorney Michael J. Keane announced that Jamal Fareed, 74, of Buffalo, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision for the 2018 killing of Ray Thompson. The sentence was handed down by Erie County Court Judge James Bargnesi.
The fatal incident occurred on November 13, 2018, at approximately 2:00 p.m., when Buffalo Police responded to a report of a deceased man at an apartment building on the 900 block of Main Street. Officers discovered 66-year-old Ray Thompson dead inside his apartment. An autopsy later revealed that Thompson died from stab wounds and blunt force trauma.
Fareed was indicted and arraigned in September 2019 but was later deemed not competent to stand trial. He remained in a secure mental health facility for several years while undergoing treatment. In June 2024, the District Attorney’s Office received notice that Fareed had been restored to competency. A subsequent evaluation in August 2024 confirmed that he was fit to proceed, and a trial was scheduled for March 2025.
However, Fareed pleaded guilty to one count of Manslaughter in the First Degree, a Class “B” violent felony, on February 10, 2025, avoiding a jury trial.
District Attorney Keane commended the investigative work of retired Detectives Carl Lundin and James Kaska of the Buffalo Police Department. The prosecution team included Chief Cathleen M. Roemer of the Felony Trials Bureau, Assistant District Attorney Christine M. Garvey of the Buffalo City Court Bureau, Assistant District Attorney Briana R.D. Kalman of the Narcotics/Intelligence Bureau, and Chief Eugene T. Partridge III of the Homicide Bureau.
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