TAMPA, Fla. — Deputies arrested four people and both the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and Tampa police have a warrant out for one more in connection with the shooting death of Florida rapper Julio Foolio.
Foolio, whose legal name is Charles Jones, was in the Tampa area for his birthday at an Airbnb on June 23, according to his lawyer. However, he was asked to leave because there were too many people at the residence. He went to a Holiday Inn near the University of South Florida where he was reportedly ambushed. The 26-year-old rapper died from his injuries, and police said a total of four people were hit by gunfire.
During a news conference Monday, law enforcement showed video surveillance footage during the early morning shooting that shows five people dressed all in black carrying guns around the hotel, waiting for Jones. They start shooting at the car where Jones is in the passenger seat and keep shooting as the car tries to drive away.
"It looks like a movie," Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw said. "But this isn't a movie. These are people's real lives."
Alicia Andrews, 21; Isaiah Chance, 21 and Sean Gathright, 18, are in custody in Jacksonville for their involvement, Bercaw said at the press conference. He said Rashad Murphy, 30, and Davion Murphy, 27, had warrants out for their arrest, but Rashad was arrested later that night.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and U.S. Marshals Service tracked Rashad down at an apartment complex. Multiple units tried to negotiate him out but he was eventually forced out and surrendered after midnight Tuesday, according to the sheriff's office. Law enforcement is still looking for Murphy.
Andrews and Chance are charged with one count of premeditated first-degree murder with a firearm and one count of conspiracy. Gathright is charged with one count of premeditated first-degree murder with a firearm, one count of conspiracy, three counts of attempted premeditated first-degree murder and one count of tampering with physical evidence
Rashad and Davion are both charged with one count of first-degree murder, one count of conspiracy to commit murder in the first degree and three counts of attempted murder in the first degree.
In the days since the shooting, Tampa police reassured the public that the high-profile incident and other gun violence events were isolated and not random. Jones was likely shot by a rival gang in Jacksonville, Bercaw said.
The chief confirmed this at the conference and said the five suspects were part of rival gangs and Jones' murder was in retaliation to an ongoing feud.
"The feud stops here," State Attorney Suzy Lopez said at the conference. Only three people pulled the trigger but five are charged with murder and they will all face life in prison, she said.
Lopez called their plan to kill Jones "truly alarming."
Tampa Police worked with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office to investigate the shooting using evidence such as car tag readers, cell phones and surveillance footage. The three people are currently in custody in Jacksonville but will be transported to Tampa to appear in court.