Authorities announce arrests in Florida rapper Julio Foolio's shooting death
Following the shooting death of Florida rapper Julio Foolio last month, authorities announced three arrests in the case on Monday and warrants for two others.
The 26-year-old performer, whose real name was Charles Andrew Jones II, was ambushed and killed celebrating his birthday at a Tampa Holiday Inn on June 23. Foolio had advertised the party on Instagram.
His attorney, Lewis Fusco, previously said too many people showed up at the Airbnb where it was being hosted, so it moved to the Holiday Inn across from the University of South Florida, where Foolio was shot at about 4:40 a.m. in the parking lot. Police said three others were injured.
Jones had also celebrated earlier at Teasers Gentlemen's Club, according to his Instagram posts.
Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters warned that his officers would be on high alert in the gang community in case of potential retaliation or continued violence. On Saturday, they arrested local residents Isaiah Jermaine Chance, 21, Alisha Latoya Andrews, 21, and Sean Andre Gathright, 18.
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Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw identified the others wanted as Davion Vershard Murphy, 27, and Rashad Treyvionne Murphy, 30.
All are charged with first-degree premeditated murder with a firearm and conspiracy to commit first-degree premeditated murder with a firearm, Bercaw said.
"Surveillance video was critical in this investigation as suspects were seen on video following Jones from location to location," he said, noting Jones posted his locations on social media several times that night. "This shows the lengths that these individuals were willing to go through to achieve this murder."
At 4:15 a.m. Jones headed to the hotel, and one of the suspect vehicles is seen following him and staged across the street. At 4:38 a.m. three gunmen exit the vehicle and walk over with a handgun and two rifles and open fire on the vehicle Jones was a passenger in.
Detectives used footage from the scene, license plate readers and phone logs to identify two vehicles and link them to the suspects, he said. They were members of or affiliated with ATK and 1200, rival gangs of Jones.
Jones was part of the 6 Block gang, he said, though he's also been linked with KTA. Detectives believe that ATK and 1200 worked together to target Jones as part of an ongoing feud in Jacksonville.
“Let me be clear, the feud stops here," Hillsborough County State Attorney Suzy Lopez said. "The level of planning and coordination between these five defendants was truly alarming. It is clear that they all had one purpose in coming to Tampa, and that was to kill."
It was too early Monday to determine the suspects' defense attorneys to reach out for comment.
Julio Foolio dies:Florida rapper killed in shooting during birthday celebration
Who is Julio Foolio?
Jones labeled himself as an independent artist and started getting noticed with his Soulja K collab “Dirty Sticks.” He was ranked 13th on the Top 20 Florida Rappers Fall List by Say Cheese TV.
In 2018, he created his breakout mixtape collaboration "6Toven" with legendary producer Zaytoven. He released 10 albums, including his latest in April, "Resurrrection."
He often rapped about friends who were murdered — 15 before he was 20, according to his Spotify bio — and talked about music as therapy.
The Sheriff's Office also said Jones had gang affiliations with KTA, which has been feuding for years with ATK, led by Yungeen Ace (real name Kenyatta Bullard). The groups co-existed in a rap subculture that focuses on drug culture, guns and gang violence.
In 2021, Jones was shot at and injured while getting out of his vehicle. Last October, Jones was shot in the foot when the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said, "it appears that the suspect or suspects were waiting for the victim and ambushed him." The car he was driving was riddled with bullet holes, firstcoastnews.com reported at the time.
"Over (five) plus attempts on my life (and I'm) still here, real Demi god," Foolio posted in January, along with a new song depicting himself singing from a wheelchair about people trying to kill a superstar.
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"These last couple months/years of my life have been tragic," Jones posted on Instagram in April. "God been (trying to) send me a message. Multiple attempts on my life, I keep surviving. I keep losing my (brothers) to jail and graveyards, but I know the most high doing everything for a reason. He let me walk again for a reason."
His attorney said he was fortunate enough to know Jones, the man beyond the public persona.
"He was a kid who grew up in challenging circumstances, determined to defy the odds by any means possible and succeed in all that he did," Fusco posted to an Instagram story. "His journey was marked by resilience and a deep-seated desire to strive for greatness."
What did Yungeen Ace say about Julio Foolio after his death?
Even Ace expressed sorrow about what happened. During a July 21 Instagram Live, he responded to a question about Jones’ death, 94.9 The Beat reported.
“That (expletive) sad, I ain’t (going to) lie, bruh," he said. "Leave the streets alone, playa. I don’t condone (expletive) like that.”
He went on to say they had been “cool.”
“I was just talking to him and I was like, ‘Bruh, you (got to) stay out of the way. You know a (expletive) love you out here,” according to the radio station.
What does Julio Foolio's mother say?
Jones’ mother, Sandrikas Mays, was at Monday's news conference but didn't speak at the podium. She previously told Newsweek she was highly supportive of Jones' rap career. But she acknowledged that it's what led to various attacks on her son and herself.
"We have to understand that Charles wasn't getting shot at because he killed somebody, because he robbed somebody, because anything like that," Mays told Newsweek. "That's not what happened. All this happened because of rapping."
After she was shot eight times at close range, Mays said she implored her son to stop rapping. And of course, he made a song about it, she said.
Beyond his career, Mays said she wants her son to be remembered for the way he helped others.
"I want Charles to be remembered as a person, not as just like a dog on a street or anything like that, because he did do some good things for the community,” Mays said. “He touched a lot of people's lives. I have thousands of messages, good messages, all from people from Africa, from Russia, U.K., that told me that his music helped them cope with a lot of things."
She also hopes his death can make a difference in the violence surrounding the industry.
"I just want everybody to change who is in this drill scene because it's never going to get any better," Mays said. "It's never going to get good because you have the commentators and the blogs that (are) going to boost it up. They boost it up and unfortunately, things like this (are) the end result."