FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — It appears to be a lot easier to schedule a deposition with rap star Drake than it is to get him to show up, attorneys for one of the men charged with the murder of rising rap star XXXTentacion are learning.
The most recent effort to serve Aubrey Drake Graham with a subpoena on Valentine’s Day in California was met with a closed gate and armed guards who refused to accept it.
“After having the gate shut in his face, the process server posted the subpoena, only to have one of Mr. Graham’s security staff literally kick the subpoena down the long driveway that leads up to the Beverly Crest mansion, Drake’s Beverly Hills residence,” attorney Mauricio Padilla wrote in court documents that were made public this week.
Drake is not a suspect in the murder of XXXTentacion, the emerging superstar whose real name was Jahseh Onfroy. Onfroy was killed in a robbery on June 18, 2018, in Deerfield Beach. But Onfroy once mentioned Drake in an ominous social media post that he later deleted.
Now lawyers for at least one of the accused suspects want to know, from Drake, the nature of their relationship and whether there was any friction between them that could have contributed to Onfroy’s murder.
Investigators and prosecutors believe Onfroy was killed by four robbers, three of whom have been on trial this month. Padilla represents Dedrick Williams. Jurors saw social media videos on Tuesday showing Williams flashing thousands of dollars in $100 bills just hours after the robbery and murder.
Onfroy had just withdrawn $50,000 from a bank and was visiting Riva Motorsports hoping to buy a motorcycle. He was ambushed leaving the shop. Prosecutors say the money in Williams’ hands was stolen from Onfroy.
Two other suspects, Michael Boatwright and Trayvon Newsome, are on trial with Williams as co-defendants. A fourth, Robert Allen, pleaded guilty and testified against his co-defendants. His agreement with prosecutors did not include a promise of a reduced sentence.
Defense lawyers in the case accused investigators of rushing to judgment against their clients and failing to follow up on leads that could identify other suspects.
That’s where the cryptic message about Drake comes in. Jim Lewis, Allen’s lawyer, said his client’s testimony should have ended any suspicion that anyone other than the defendants were responsible for what happened to Onfroy.
“This was about a robbery,” Lewis said Tuesday, “not some kind of feud between rappers.”
The trial is continuing this week in front of Broward Circuit Judge Michael Usan.
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