FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Grammy Award-winning rapper Lil Durk was arrested in Florida on federal charges that he paid to attempt the revenge attempted murder of rapper Quando Rondo at a Los Angeles gas station in 2022. cousin.

Durk, 32, is accused of conspiring to commit murder-for-hire in Robinson’s slaying of Saviay, 24, who was shot to death on Aug. 19, 2022, according to an FBI affidavit released Friday.

Five other members of Durk’s Chicago-based rap collective “Only the Family,” or “OTF,” have also been arrested, and there may be at least two more arrests, according to court documents filed. Durk was arrested Thursday night. The FBI says South Florida is trying to flee the country.

Durk, whose real name is Durk Banks, won a Grammy for Best Melodic Rap Performance earlier this year for his song “All My Life” featuring J. Cole. He was also nominated three times and was a featured artist on Drake’s song “Laugh Now Cry Later.”

Martin Estrada, the US attorney for Los Angeles, called the attack a “cold-blooded murder”.

“The shooting occurred in an open field, at a gas station at a busy intersection, endangering many people in the area,” Estrada said in a statement. he said. “This type of violent gun crime is devastating to our society and we will have zero tolerance.” “For those who commit such callous acts of violence.”

FBI Agent Sarah Corcoran said in her affidavit that OTF members “used violence, including murder and assault, at Banks’ direction and to maintain their status with OTF.”

Durk’s representatives did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Friday.

The shooting stems from the November 2020 killing of OTF rapper King Von, 26, at an Atlanta nightclub after Von and Rondo got into a fight, according to Corcoran’s affidavit and other federal court records. Records say a friend of Rondo pulled a gun and shot Von several times, killing him. Von, whose real name is Dayvon Bennett, had two hit singles, “Crazy Story” and “Took Her to the O.”

Authorities say Durk declared that he would “pay a reward” to anyone who killed Rondo, whose real name is Tyquian Bowman.

Almost two years later, a murder plot quickly emerged, Corcoran wrote.

On August 18, 2022, Durk’s friends learned that Rondo was staying at a hotel in Los Angeles. That day, Deandre Wilson, Keith Jones, David Lindsey, Asa Houston and an unnamed fifth suspect flew from Chicago to San Diego and then traveled to Los Angeles using funds provided by Durk, Corcoran said.

That day, Durk allegedly texted a co-worker who was arranging the flights: “Do not book flights under any name that has nothing to do with me.” Corcoran said there is video evidence that Durk was staying at a home in the San Fernando Valley that day.

When OTF members arrived in Los Angeles, they met Kayon Grant, who flew there on a private jet. Grant, a top employee at OTF, rented hotel rooms to the men and bought them four ski masks and two luxury sedans, according to court records. Grant allegedly gave Jones, Lindsey, and a third unnamed suspect guns, including ones converted into machine guns.

The next day, the group allegedly followed Rondo and Robinson in a Cadillac Escalade as they drove to a Los Angeles marijuana dispensary, a West Hollywood clothing store, and then to a gas station across from the Beverly Center.

Houston allegedly parked her car behind the station so Jones, Lindsey and the unnamed defendant could ambush Rondo. In the indictment and news about the incident, it is stated that they went out and opened fire, killing Robinson, who was standing outside the Escalade but missed Rondo.

The suspects then went to an In-N-Out hamburger stand and discussed payment with Grant, then flew to San Diego, Corcoran and Chicago, according to other documents. Wilson then allegedly paid Jones and Lindsey an undisclosed amount.

Grant, Jones, Lindsey, Wilson and Houston were arrested Thursday in Chicago on conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire charges. Attorney information for the men was not immediately available in court records.

Corcoran wrote that after their arrest, Durk booked two flights from South Florida airports, one to Dubai and the other to Switzerland. He then booked a private flight to Italy but was arrested in Miami before he could board.

Durk and the other defendants are being held until they can be transferred to Los Angeles.

In 2019, Durk and King Von were charged in a drive-by shooting in Atlanta that left a man injured in the leg. Prosecutors dropped the case against Durk in 2022, two years after Von was killed. Durk has denied involvement.

In 2014, Durk pleaded guilty to felony use of a weapon and possession of a firearm after he was seen carrying a gun on a street in Chicago. He escaped prison sentence.

Two villages in Chicago’s western suburbs, Bellwood and Broadview, honored Durk last week and announced that they would collaborate with his charitable organization, the Neighborhood Heroes Foundation, to provide mentorship for young people.

But on Friday, Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson announced she was severing ties with Neighborhood Heroes and taking back the honorary key to the village given to Durk.

Thompson wrote on the village’s Facebook page that while Durk and the other suspects were presumed innocent, village residents “have even higher standards of moral and ethical conduct.”

A telephone message seeking comment from Bellwood’s mayor, Andre Harvey, was left at his office.

Copyright 2024 NPR