After 8 days of jury deliberation, a verdict was reached in the murder trial of Florida rapper #XXXTentacion.
24-year-old Trayvon Newsome, 26-year-old Dedrick Williams, and 28-year-old Michael Boatwright were found guilty of first-degree murder and robbery charges. 26-year-old Robert Allen was the only one that plead guilty. Allen plead guilty to second-degree murder and testified as a witness against the other 3.
The Murder of XXXTentacion
Detectives say the group ambushed and robbed the rapper, whose real name is Jahseh Onfroy, shortly before 4 p.m., on June 18, 2018, outside of RIVA Motorsports in Deerfield Beach. XXXTentacion had just left Riva Motorsports with a friend when his BMW was blocked by an SUV that swerved in front.
Surveillance video showed two masked gunmen emerging and confronting the 20-year-old singer at the driver’s window, and one shot him repeatedly. They then grabbed a Louis Vuitton bag containing cash XXXTentacion had just withdrawn from the bank, got back into the SUV, and sped away. The friend was not harmed.
The Trial of XXX
During the monthlong trial, prosecutors linked the men to June 18, 2018, shooting outside Riva Motorsports in suburban Fort Lauderdale through extensive surveillance video was taken inside and outside the store, plus cellphone videos they took that showed them flashing fistfuls of $100 bills hours after the slaying. The men robbed the rapper of $50,000, prosecutors said.
Newsome was accused of being the other gunman. Williams was accused of being the driver of the SUV, with Allen also inside.
Allen testified that the men set out that day to commit robberies and went to the motorcycle shop to buy Williams a mask. There they spotted the rapper and decided to make him their target. Allen and Williams went inside the shop to confirm it was him. They then went back to the SUV they had rented, waited for XXXTentacion to emerge and ambushed him, according to testimony.
Allen, who cooperated and testified against his co-defenders, was accused of being a liar by the defense. Defense attorneys say Allen’s lies are motivated by avoiding a life sentence. They also said prosecutors and detectives did a poor investigation that didn’t look at other possible suspects, including the Canadian rap star Drake; he and XXXTentacion had an online feud.
Drake was called to sit for a deposition in the case, but his lawyers did not feel that he should have to.
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Drake was no longer required to sit for a deposition due to a lack of evidence.
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Reaching The Verdict
During the deliberations, the jury asked to review text messages from Boatwright, whom prosecutors identified as the shooter, from the day of the shooting. A printout from prosecutors shows that from the time he woke up about 10:30 a.m. until 3 p.m., about an hour before the shooting, he sent 17 to various people, including one about getting a car. Prosecutors say the SUV used in the shooting was rented from a woman through a phone app. He then stopped texting for about two hours.
About an hour after the shooting, he sent a text saying, “Tell my brother I got the money for the new phone.” Minutes after that, he sent someone a screenshot of a news story saying XXXTentacion had been shot. This was used as one of the key evidence in this case.
Allen has not been sentenced and he faces anywhere between time served to life in prison. The other 3 men are set to be sentenced on April 6. They are facing life in prison.
