BOSTON — A Quincy man has been sentenced to prison for an assault that killed a native of Ireland in Boston on St. Patrick’s Day 2023, the district attorney said Monday.
Sanusi Sadiq, 31, was sentenced Monday in Suffolk Superior Court to three to six years in state prison for the death of Barry Whelan, 46, of Woburn, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in a statement. Judge Mary Ames handed down his sentence.
A jury convicted Sadiq of manslaughter in January in connection with Whelan’s death after a retrial.
The first trial, which was held in February 2025, resulted in a mistrial.
At around 9 p.m. on March 17, 2023, Boston police responded to the corner of Winter Street and Winter Place in Downtown Crossing for an unresponsive person, later identified as Whelan, on the ground outside of a TD Bank ATM.
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Boston EMS took Whelan by ambulance to Tufts Medical Center where he was treated for a traumatic brain injury, Hayden said. He died a few days later, on March 20, 2023.
Surveillance footage captured Whelan and a man, later identified as Sadiq, having a verbal exchange for several minutes, Hayden said.
The video captured Sadiq striking Whelan in the head from behind with his right arm, Hayden said. Whelan fell back and hit his head on the ground. Sadiq walked away down Winter Place.
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Police identified and interviewed Sadiq, who admitted to hitting Whelan, Hayden said. Sadiq said that he and Whelan did not know each other and that the words exchanged were racial in nature.
Whelan’s family and friends attended Monday’s sentencing.
Whelan’s employer and friend told the court that community members renovated an area in their church and dedicated it, along with a plaque, to Whelan.
“This is how much Barry meant to us,” the employer and friend said.
Another friend said Whelan was “a hard worker, passionate about his job, and incredibly proud of his Irish roots and happy to live in the U.S.”
Sadiq addressed the court before being sentenced, apologizing to Whelan’s loved ones for the pain he caused, and said that this was “a moment of poor judgment and decision making,” and that his decision has “forever changed the trajectory of my life.”
The district attorney said a bad decision led to Whelan’s death.
“Some bad decisions nearly three years ago resulted in one person losing his life, another person losing his freedom, and many friends and family members left with eternal loss and sadness,” Hayden said. “We far too often see the tragic results when people fail to make the simple decision to walk away.”
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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