XXXtentacion.Photo: Larry Marano/Shutterstock
Three men have been found guilty of murdering rapperXXXTentacionin 2018 following a jury trial in Florida that concluded Monday.
Boatwright fired the shot that killed the “Look at Me!” performer while Newsom was the other gunman, prosecutors said. Williams, who apparently organized the murder, was noted to be driving the getaway car.
Trayvon Newsome, Dedrick Williams and Michael Boatwright.Carline Jean/AP/Shutterstock
According to theNew York Times, the jury made the decision partly based ontestimony from Robert Allen, who was also at the scene and previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last year.
Other evidence provided included the store’s surveillance footage of two men apparently watching XXXTentacion, mobile data confirming their location and use of the SUV as well as video footage of them flaunting the cash shortly after the murder.
The jury reportedly reviewed over 1,000 text messages as well as footage from the defendants' phones, which included a photo of a news story about the incident, throughout the week of deliberations. While Boatwright, Newsome and Williams were tried together, jurors were instructed to make separate decisions on each of their guilty or innocent statuses.
The three men’s defense lawyers reportedly “argued that DNA evidence failed to link them to the shooting,” according toNYT. Their team also said Allen was an unreliable witness due to past felony convictions and attempted to link XXXTentacion’s murder to his beef with rapperDrake, who was previously dismissed from giving a deposition.
“Plans hatched in hell do not have angels for witnesses,” said lead prosecutorPascale Achille, following closing arguments,per the Associated Press.
Circuit Judge Michael Usan set the men’s sentencing for April 6, where they are expected to receive life in prison. (The Associated Press reports that Florida law requires a life sentence for first-degree murder convictions.)
After notching more hits and collaborating with the likes ofNoah Cyrus, Juicy J and Trippie Redd, the rapper later earned a posthumous No. 1 single with 2018’s “Sad!” shortly after his death.
In January 2019, XXXTentacion’s mother Cleopatra Bernard and Sanchez announced the birth of his first son,Gekyume Onfroy. He was born three days after what should have been the performer’s 21st birthday.
source: people.com
