Two people have been arrested in the murder of rapper Young Dolph, who was allegedly shot by two people in November while buying cookies at a bakery in Memphis, according to authorities.
The US Marshals Service announced Tuesday that one of the suspects, Justin Johnson, 23, had been arrested in Indiana that day. Last week, police in Memphis received a first-degree murder warrant for Mr. Johnson and law enforcement agencies offered a $15,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
Also on Tuesday, the other suspect in the murder, Cornelius Smith, was indicted by a Tennessee grand jury on charges of first degree murder and property theft in connection with the murder, Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich said in a statement. statement. a press release. Smith, 32, was also charged with the attempted murder of Young Dolph’s brother, who was also in the bakery during the shooting.
Mr. Smith was arrested Dec. 9 in Southaven, Tennessee, on a warrant that charged him with car theft in connection with the getaway car used in the murder, Ms. Weirich said.
The young Dolph, 36, a promising hip-hop artist who had emerged in recent years and whose real name Adolph Thornton Jr. was gunned down on November 17 at Makeda’s, a bakery in downtown Memphis. The gunmen fled and he was pronounced dead on the spot, the Memphis police said:.
It was unclear Tuesday whether Mr. Johnson and Mr. Smith had attorneys.
The US Marshals Service, the Memphis Police Department and the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office will hold a joint press conference on Wednesday to discuss the matter.
Mr Johnson, 23, had posted on social media this weekend, maintaining his innocence and saying he planned to turn himself in on Monday, Action News 5 in Memphis reported. Monday passed without arrest, and two fugitive US Marshal task forces captured Mr Johnson Tuesday afternoon.
Johnson, a rapper known as Straight Drop, also has an pending warrant for a federal controlled release violation on a previous gun conviction, according to the US Marshals Service.
Young Dolph’s last solo album, ‘Rich Slave’, debuted at number 4 on the Billboard chart in 2020. He had previously survived at least two admissions in 2017.
Memphis Police Department and Mayor Jim Strickland have pointed to the murder of Young Dolph as yet another example of a steady increase in gun violence in the city. In a letter to voters last week, Mr Strickland called for reform of state gun laws to increase penalties for crimes such as serious crimes.
Mr Johnson had not been adequately punished, Mr Strickland wrote, referring to the six months he had served in prison four years ago after firing a gun at a bowling alley and injuring several people.
“One of our top legislative priorities has been and remains to find a workable solution to these laws so that when someone commits a violent crime, they don’t do the same things again in a few weeks or months,” he said. wrote.