Black lives matter little in the Hip Hop community.

Police investigating rappers’ ties to shootings around Miami

By TERRY SPENCER

“There are a lot of unanswered questions,” Miami-Dade Police spokesman Alvaro Zabaleta said Monday in a phone interview.

Meanwhile, rapper Kodak Black appeared Monday in federal court after being arrested Saturday at the festival on a weapons charge, and headliner Lil’ Wayne was a no-show Saturday night, explaining on social media that he refused to be searched by security or police to enter the venue.

An NBA player, Phoenix Suns forward Josh Jackson, was arrested Friday after police say he refused to leave a VIP area he entered without a pass and then ran away after being handcuffed. He was released on $1,000 bail. The Suns did not immediately return a call for comment.

Tap to unmute

Rolling Loud organizers did not return calls and emails seeking comment. The festival’s Twitter account Monday posted a message reading, “IF YOU DIDN’T ENJOY ROLLING LOUD DESPITE THE HICCUPS, STAY HOME NEXT YEAR...THIS IS HIP-HOP.” The account was later suspended.

In the most notable shooting tied to the festival, gunmen in a passing Cadillac Escalade opened fire on rapper NBA YoungBoy as he and his 10-member entourage exited Trump International Beach Resort Miami in Sunny Isles Beach on Sunday afternoon. Those shots wounded the rapper’s 19-year-old girlfriend, Kaylyn Marie Long, and grazed a 5-year-old bystander.

Some members of YoungBoy’s party, who were legally armed, returned fire, Zabaleta said. One of those bullets fatally struck a 43-year-old bystander, Mohamad Jradi, as he sat in his van across the street. No members of YoungBoy’s party will be charged as they fired in self-defense, Zabaleta said.

Four men who were later detained at the stadium as possible suspects were not connected to the shooting and were released, he said.

“There are a lot of unanswered questions,” Miami-Dade Police spokesman Alvaro Zabaleta said Monday in a phone interview.

Meanwhile, rapper Kodak Black appeared Monday in federal court after being arrested Saturday at the festival on a weapons charge, and headliner Lil’ Wayne was a no-show Saturday night, explaining on social media that he refused to be searched by security or police to enter the venue.

An NBA player, Phoenix Suns forward Josh Jackson, was arrested Friday after police say he refused to leave a VIP area he entered without a pass and then ran away after being handcuffed. He was released on $1,000 bail. The Suns did not immediately return a call for comment.

Tap to unmute

Rolling Loud organizers did not return calls and emails seeking comment. The festival’s Twitter account Monday posted a message reading, “IF YOU DIDN’T ENJOY ROLLING LOUD DESPITE THE HICCUPS, STAY HOME NEXT YEAR...THIS IS HIP-HOP.” The account was later suspended.

In the most notable shooting tied to the festival, gunmen in a passing Cadillac Escalade opened fire on rapper NBA YoungBoy as he and his 10-member entourage exited Trump International Beach Resort Miami in Sunny Isles Beach on Sunday afternoon. Those shots wounded the rapper’s 19-year-old girlfriend, Kaylyn Marie Long, and grazed a 5-year-old bystander.

Some members of YoungBoy’s party, who were legally armed, returned fire, Zabaleta said. One of those bullets fatally struck a 43-year-old bystander, Mohamad Jradi, as he sat in his van across the street. No members of YoungBoy’s party will be charged as they fired in self-defense, Zabaleta said.

Four men who were later detained at the stadium as possible suspects were not connected to the shooting and were released, he said.

 of 5

In this Saturday, May 11, 2019 photo, Miami Beach police investigators gather evidence on Española Way between Collins and Washington after an early morning shooting. Miami area law enforcement agencies are looking for connections between a series of weekend shootings that killed one rapper, wounded another rapper's girlfriend and hit three bystanders, killing a man who was leaving work to be with his family on Mother's Day. (Flor Paz/El Nuevo Herald via AP)