A judge has granted a defense motion that forces Canadian rapper Drake to sit for a deposition in the ongoing trial of three defendants charged with first degree of rapper XXXTentacion in June 2018.
The Canadian rapper will have to comply with the order to sit for the deposition on February 24 after previously ignoring several requests by defense lawyer Mauricio Padilla representing Diedrick Williams.
The defendants Michael Boatwright (28), who is alleged to be the killer who shot X, Williams (26), the alleged driver of the car and alleged mastermind behind the murder, and Trayvon Newsome (24), the other alleged gunman are charged with first-degree murder with a firearm and armed robbery with a firearm in the murder of XXXTentacion whose real name is Jahseh Onfroy.
The defense attorney for Williams, during opening statements, asked that the court grant an order to show cause in order to subpoena Drake to sit for deposition as there were numerous reports and tips by fans asking that Drake be investigated in X’s murder as the two rappers had a tense beef in 2018.
Fans have also dug up an Instagram Story from XXXTentacion in which he says if he dies, Drake is responsible for it. The rapper died a month later, and his attorney focused his opening statement on the fact that the police had allegedly not done a thorough investigation and they had arrested the wrong person- Williams.
Drake is not the only rapper who has been referenced but the Migos, although no application to subpoena them was made.
In the meantime, Prosecutors have not mentioned Drake, whose real name is Aubrey Graham, in any way in the trial.
Padilla previously told the court that a deposition date was set two times before, but despite Drake being properly served, he failed to show up or acknowledge the summons.
Drizzy will need to sit for the deposition on February 24 or face consequences.
“If deponent Aubrey Drake Graham does not appear to deposition he must appear before this court on Monday February 27, 2023 at 10 a.m. EST at so [sic] the court can determine why he should not be held in contempt.”
In his motion to show cause, Padilla not only mentioned the Instagram Story, which said, “If anyone tries to kill me it was @champagnepapi [Drake’s Instagram handle]. I’m snitching rn,” but also concerns that the late rapper’s mother made to police when she gave a statement to police after his death.
In his filing, Padilla claims that Drake has gang affiliations and even had a man call into a public podcast to claim that he was Drake’s shooter.
Drake’s lyrics incessantly diss XXXTentacion even after his death was also referenced in the filing by the attorney. In one song, “BS,” on his latest joint 21 Savage album, Her Loss, the attorney claim that the lyrics, “I never put no prices on the beef until we end this sh*t/I pay half a million for his soul, he my nemesis,” is about XXXTentacion.
The filing also speaks to XXXTentacion claiming that Drake had stolen his cadence and style on a track “KMT” released before he was killed.
As for the prosecution, it has so far led evidence from a co-defendant turned state witness Robert Allen who claims that it was Williams’ idea to go out to rob people and while going to buy a mask, he saw the rapper’s car at Riva Motorsports and even pulled up his Instagram to confirm that the BMW i8 in the parking lot was the one X drove.
The witness further claimed that he even argued against robbing the rapper, given the CCTV footage at Riva motorsports easily identified them, but it was Williams who persuaded the other two to rob the rapper and came up with the elaborate plan to block the rapper from coming out of the only exit at the business place so they could ambush him. The witness identified Boatwright as the one who fired several shots at XXXTentacion, as seen on surveillance footage. The shots instantly killed X.
On Thursday, a deputy testified that the second alleged gunman, Newsome, had spotted Allen being taken to prison transport when he shouted after him that he was working with police and working with the white man in a way to intimidate him as a “snitch.”
Drake nor his attorneys have not publicly acknowledged the order.
Urban Islandz coverage of XXXTentacion’s murder trial continues.
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