Pop Smoke's Fatal Home Invasion Was Orchestrated by a 15-Year-Old, According to Detective
The alleged gunman and four others forced their way into a Hollywood Hills AirBnB home being rented by Pop Smoke. They were set on stealing a Rolex and a Cuban link chain, only the Rolex was stolen and it was later resold for $2,000, said an investigator.
New details have emerged surrounding Pop Smoke’s fatal shooting. According to the New York Daily News, the Brooklyn rapper was shot and killed by a 15-year-old.
The alleged gunman and four others forced their way into a Hollywood Hills AirBnB rental home. They were set on stealing a Rolex and a Cuban link chain, only the Rolex was stolen and it was later resold for $2,000, said an investigator.
The 15-year-old who is the youngest of the four defendants is now facing murder and robbery charges in the case. He allegedly admitted his role in the shooting during a recorded interview with a cellmate at a juvenile detention center last May.
“He admitted that he shot the victim three times with a Baretta 9 (mm.),” LAPD Detective Carlos Camacho testified Friday at a preliminary hearing for suspect, Corey Walker, 20, the sole adult defendant. Additionally, the 15-year-old alleged shooter “admitted that they asked for the jewelry” and had a “confrontation” with the rapper at 4 a.m. during the home invasion on February 19, 2020.
“They got into a fight, and he shot him three times,” Camacho said, directly noting the defendant’s recorded jail interview. Walker has pleaded not guilty.
Per Camacho, Walker also admitted to his role in the shooting during a secretly recorded jailhouse interview with an informant who was strategically placed in his cell after his July arrest. In the recording he allegedly admitted the group utilized ski masks, gloves and a police scanner to avoid getting caught.
Pop Smoke fought back during the confrontation and charged at the intruders. He was then “pistol whipped” and shot in the chest.
Walker’s lawyer Christopher Darden attempted to have his client’s murder charge completely dismissed. Darden made the motion alleging that Walker was solely the driver that night and never entered the house. “He’s clearly not a wider and abettor of premeditated murder,” he said. “At most he’s a principal in a robbery.”
Deputy District Attorney Hilary Williams rebutted and argued that Walker had scouted the home hours ahead of the invasion and knew that the other defendants had plans to rob the rapper at gunpoint.
“They specifically target this house wanting this victim to be there,” Williams added. She also said Walker showed a “reckless indifference to human life.”
The Judge H. Clay Jacke II denied Darden’s request. He also ruled that there was “sufficient cause” to send Walker to trial. Walker could be eligible for the death penalty.