One of the men suspected of murdering late rapper XXXTentacion is pleading for a release from jail amid the coronavirus pandemic, claiming that he has a weakened immune system. Dedrick D. Williams, the first of four suspects arrested and indicted for the rapper’s murder, asked Judge Michael A. Usan in a letter for a temporary release from the Broward County jail in Florida, where he has been for nearly two years.
“Dear honorable Judge Usan,” the letter, published by TMZ, begins. “I am sending you this letter to save my life. Recently a deputy at the Broward County main jail gave an inmate the coronavirus. This matter makes me afraid because my immune system is very weak. And here at the jail they aren’t testing anyone. I’m being held on a violation of probation with a new charge [XXXTentacion’s murder charge]. I am innocent on the new charge that I’m charged with. But being that I was on probation I’m being held awaiting to be proven innocent,” he wrote.
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“I am asking to be given a bond so I can avoid catching the coronavirus. Even if it’s only to be out on bond and house arrest until this disease blows over. I’ve been here 21 months and haven’t been in any trouble,” he continued. “Since the age of 17 I’ve had you as a judge. I am now 24. Never have I missed court of failed a drug test since being in your court room. I ask for this request so my children won’t be without a father and my mom without a son. Please and thank you judge and I hope that you and your family are safe as well.”
Williams — along with Michael Boatwright, Trayvon Newsome and Robert Allen — was indicted by a grand jury in July 2018 for first-degree murder. All four men were also charged with armed robbery with a firearm. TMZ reports that according to arrest records, Williams has been charged with at least 11 felonies.
XXXTentacion — real name Jahseh Dwayne Onfroy — was shot and killed in what police called an armed robbery in June 2018 as the 20-year-old was leaving a motorsports vehicle dealership in Florida. According to authorities, XXXTentacion’s sports car was blocked by another vehicle, from which two masked gunmen emerged and shot the rapper before fleeing the scene with a Louis Vuitton bag that contained $50,000.
While Boatwright and Newsome were the suspects behind the gun, Williams is believed to be the driver of the vehicle that blocked XXXTentacion’s car. Allen was seen in security footage inside the dealership.
XXXTentacion, an up and coming rapper, was known for his two albums, as well as his own legal trouble. At the time of his murder, he was awaiting trial on domestic violence charges — namely that he assaulted his pregnant girlfriend — that came from an October 2016 arrest.
