FILE - Takeoff arrives at the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles on July 10, 2019. Authorities said Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2022, that a man who has been accused of illegally having a gun at the time that rapper Takeoff was fatally shot last month outside a private party at a downtown Houston bowling alley has been charged in connection with the case. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
HOUSTON (AP) – A man who has been accused of illegally having a gun at the time that rapper Takeoff was fatally shot last month following a private party at a downtown Houston bowling alley has been charged in connection with the case, authorities said Wednesday.
But during a court hearing, prosecutors said the suspect, Cameron Joshua, 22, is not believed to have fired a weapon during Takeoff’s shooting. Joshua is facing a charge of unlawful carrying of a weapon for allegedly having a handgun when the rapper was killed around 2:30 a.m. on Nov. 1 as gunfire erupted outside of 810 Billiards & Bowling following a private party.
Takeoff, whose off-stage name was Kirsnick Khari Ball, formed one-third of the Grammy Award-nominated rap trio Migos with uncle Quavo and cousin Offset from suburban Atlanta.
“We believe Cameron Joshua has been appropriately charged in this case and we’re continuing our investigation into the death of Takeoff,” Matt Gilliam, a prosecutor with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, told reporters in a brief statement after Wednesday’s hearing.
Christopher Downey, Joshua’s attorney, told reporters that he has not seen anything to suggest that his client fired a weapon or had anything to do with Takeoff’s shooting.
“The bottom line is … Cameron Joshua did not shoot Takeoff,” Downey said.
When asked if Joshua knows who shot Takeoff, Downey said, “We will discuss that with the DA’s office if we decide to. Right now, we’re charged with offenses and we’re not saying anything.”
During the hearing, a judge decided to keep Joshua in custody until a bond hearing set for next week.
Joshua is also facing a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon for allegedly having a weapon when he was arrested on Nov. 22. He had already been out on bond after being charged in Harris County with having a fake ID in September 2021 and with burglary of a vehicle in April. He had also been convicted in October in Los Angeles County of grand theft.
Houston police have said that least two people discharged firearms when Takeoff was killed. Takeoff’s primary cause of death was listed as “penetrating gunshot wounds of head and torso into arm,” according to an autopsy.
Two others were hit by gunfire but had non-life-threatening wounds.
After the shooting, investigators sought to speak with the 40 people who attended the party and fled after the gunfire.
Migos first broke through with the massive hit “Versace” in 2013. They had four Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, though Takeoff was not on their multi-week No. 1 hit “Bad and Boujee,” featuring Lil Uzi Vert. They put out a trilogy of albums called “Culture,” “Culture II” and “Culture III,” with the first two hitting No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
At a memorial service earlier this month in Atlanta, fans as well as recording artists such as Justin Bieber and Drake celebrated Takeoff’s musical legacy.
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Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
