A Broward County Associate Medical Examiner and a firearms expert with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office testified Thursday in the murder trial of rapper XXXTentacion.
Medical Examiner Iouri Boiko explained in detail the wounds XXXTentacion suffered when he was gunned down outside Rive Motorsports near Deerfield Beach in 2018.
Boiko testified the rapper, whose real name is Jahseh Onfroy, was struck three times in the neck, each wound just centimeters apart. The jury saw photos of the wounds, the judge asked the photos not be turned toward the public.
“Three separate bullets. Was there an exit wound on wound A for Mr. Onfroy?” asked Pascale Achille, the Asst. State Prosecutor.
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“No,” answered Boiko. This means a projectile remained inside Mr. Onfroy, according to Boiko's testimony.
Dedrick Williams, 26, Trayvon Newsome, 24, and Michael Boatwright, 28, are charged with the robbery and murder. A fourth VO-descendent, Robert Allen, 25, has already pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and has testified for the prosecution against the other three.
A firearms expert with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office testified that all three bullets came from the same weapon.
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“The three bullets were fired by the same unknown 22-long rifle caliber firearm,” said William Ruiz Fontanez.
The judge said the trial is moving ahead of schedule and could wrap up by mid-March, initial estimates put the trial running until March 31st.
The jury will have the next couple of days off, and return on Tuesday.
Attorneys will be back in the courtroom tomorrow to argue several motions, one of which involved hip-hop artist Drake, his real name is Aubrey Graham.
When the murder happened word spread that Drake was involved, although several witnesses have testified he was not.
Still, defense attorneys for Dedrick Williams want to depose Drake, who skipped an initial deposition date in January. Another deposition is scheduled for Friday via zoom. It’s unclear if he will participate.
Defense attorneys say they may try to have Drake held in contempt if he is a no-show.
