#Socialites, get into this! Earlier this week it was reported that a dead body was found in a barrel at a Malibu beach. Now, it is being reported that the body found is linked to the 2020 murder of 20-year-old Brooklyn rapper Pop Smoke.
On February 19, 2020, we learned that Pop Smoke, born Bashar Barakah Jackson, was killed in a “targeted” home invasion in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California. It was reported that several men allegedly broke into the home wearing hoodies and masks, and “fired multiple shots critically wounding” the “Dior” rapper. After being rushed to Cedars-Sinai hospital, he was later pronounced dead.
Nearly five months after the rapper’s tragic death, Los Angeles Police Department officials updated that they had arrested five people in connection to the murder. Taking to social media, the department released the three adult suspects names and witheld two others who were minors.
RELATED: Pop Smoke’s Murder Suspect Says He Wanted Alleged Shooter To Smash A Vase Over His Head, Not Shoot
A tweet read, “The three adult suspects are listed by name as—Suspect 1: Corey Walker, 19, Suspect 2: Keandre D. Rodgers, 18, and Suspect 3: Jaquan Murphy, 21. Suspects 1 and 2—as well as the two juvenile suspects (aged 17 and 15)—were booked for 187(a) PC- Murder, and bail was set for all at $1,000,000 for the two adults. Suspect 3 was booked for 664/187(a) PC- Attempted Murder, and bail was also set at $1,000,000.”
Since the arrest of the five suspects, several updates were made; including a report that four of five suspects were officially charged; all but suspect 3: Jaquan Murphy. Another update saw one suspect, Corey Walker, reveal that he only wanted the alleged 15-year-old shooter to smash a vase over the rapper’s head, not shoot him.
In October 2021, a court filing was shared and read, “[Walker] specifically voiced his opposition to any violence before Pop Smoke was fatally shot. It is clear from the evidence that [Walker] did not enter the house, was not armed, and did not personally kill the victim. Moreover, the evidence is clear that the defendant did not share the actual killer’s intent to kill.”
Supporting Walker’s statement, other suspects claimed they had no intentions for the robbery to go as far as it did, affirming that they only wanted the rapper’s jewelry. They were desperate to steal Pop’s iced out watch and cuban link chain, but only managed to get away with the watch, which they later sold for about $2,000.
Then in April 2023, one of the charged men, a 20-year-old who was 17 at the time of Pop Smoke’s death, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter. In an Inglewood juvenile court, a judge sentenced him to four years and two months in a juvenile facility.
A month later, the 15-year-old suspected shooter, who is now 18, admitted to killing Pop Smoke. During his hearing in juvenile court, the 18-year-old man confessed to the rapper’s death after being charged with first-degree murder, home-invasion robbery, and discharging a firearm during the crime. The defendant is expected to be held in a state juvenile facility until he turns 25.
Since the latest court updates in Pop Smoke’s murder, it has now been reported by TMZ that police are investigating the connection between his death and a dead body found in a barrel on a Malibu beach.
Police revealed that last Monday (July 31) a barrel containing the naked body of 32-year-old Javonnta Murphy had washed ashore a beach in Malibu. He is the brother of Jaquan Murphy, one of the five people arrested after Pop Smoke’s murder. Jaquan was initially charged with attempted murder, but was cleared. Meanwhile, he is currently awaiting trial for an unrelated murder in Los Angeles County.
Investigators with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department have possible reason to believe that Javonnta’s dead body discovered is from a retaliation killing for Pop Smoke’s murder. However, the investigation is still fresh and actively been worked on. Updates to come.
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