Rising rapper Cassidy was
denied bail, after surrendering to authorities to face homicide, weapons offenses,
reckless endangerment and other charges stemming from an April 15 shooting that
left one man dead in Philadelphia.
Details are starting to
emerge in the shooting, with accounts varying. While the police claim an earlier
altercation in Cassidy’s West Oak Lane neighborhood was at the root of
the brazen shootout, others in the neighborhood claimed Cassidy and the man
gunned down were friends.
Police said an
investigation revealed that Cassidy was one of three men that allegedly shot
up a vehicle behind a row house that the 22-year-old rapper was living in.
The vehicle contained three
passengers and the shooting spree seriously wounded two of the men and fatally
wounded 22-year-old Desmond Hawkins, who was shot in the back.
Police said that Cassidy
and Hawkins had an altercation earlier in the day, citing that a neighborhood
rivalry could have been at the heart of the dispute.
Hawkins and Cassidy allegedly
exchanged hostile words earlier in the day, causing the shoot-out later that
night.
"There were a lot of
people who witnessed this, looking out of their windows," Homicide Detective
Ed Rocks told the Philadelphia Daily News. "There were casings all over
the place out there."
Police recovered over 25
shell cases and witnesses said they saw a dozen men in black hoodies fleeing
from the scene after the shooting.
Local residents
told the Philadelphia Daily News that contrary to what the police have stated,
Cassidy and Hawkins were friends and that Hawkins is even featured in Cassidy’s
DVD, “Back to Basics.”
Police are still
seeking Abdul West, 23 and another unidentified man.
Cassidy is currently incarcerated
at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, which ironically housed another
major Philadelphia rapper, Beanie Sigel.
