FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.—Three males got life sentences on Thursday for the 2018 killing of rapper XXXTentacion, who was shot exterior a South Florida motorbike store whereas being robbed of $50,000.
Michael Boatwright, 28, Dedrick Williams, 26, and Trayvon Newsome, 24, had been every convicted final month of first-degree homicide and armed theft by a jury following eight days of deliberations.
Prosecutors had not sought the loss of life penalty, so life in jail was the one sentence that Broward County Circuit Decide Michael Usan may impose for the first-degree homicide convictions.
In the course of the month-long trial, prosecutors linked Boatwright, Williams, and Newsome to the June 18, 2018, taking pictures exterior Riva Motorsports in suburban Fort Lauderdale by means of in depth surveillance video taken inside and outdoors the shop, plus cellphone movies the boys took displaying themselves flashing fistfuls of $100 payments hours after the slaying.
Prosecutors additionally had the testimony of a fourth man, Robert Allen, a former good friend of the defendants who mentioned he participated within the theft. He pleaded responsible final 12 months to second-degree homicide. His sentence was delayed till the conclusion of the opposite three defendants’ trial.
Allen’s sentence could possibly be as little as time served—which means he may quickly be launched—or so long as life, relying partly on how a lot weight prosecutors give to his help.
Protection attorneys accused Allen of being a liar who was motivated by his need to keep away from a life sentence. In addition they mentioned prosecutors and detectives did a poor job on the investigation and didn’t have a look at different attainable suspects, together with the Canadian rap star Drake, who had feuded with XXXTentacion on-line.
XXXTentacion, whose actual identify was Jahseh Onfroy, had simply left Riva Motorsports with a good friend when an SUV swerved in entrance of him and blocked his BMW.
Surveillance video confirmed two masked gunmen rising and confronting the 20-year-old singer on the driver’s window, with one taking pictures him repeatedly. They then grabbed a Louis Vuitton bag containing money that XXXTentacion had simply withdrawn from the financial institution, bought again into the SUV and sped away. The rapper’s good friend was not harmed.
Boatwright was recognized as the first shooter and Newsome was accused of being the opposite gunman. Williams was accused of driving the SUV and Allen of being contained in the automobile.
