In Summary
The gravesite of late rapper Pop Smoke was vandalized over the weekend, with suspects attempting to drag his casket out of the ground.Pop Smoke’s gravesite has been severely vandalized in Brooklyn, as first reported by TMZ.
Eyewitness images obtained Saturday morning at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn show Pop Smoke’s marble plaque, which is carved with his full name Bashar Barakah Jackson, cracked and almost completely broken through. There was also trash on the ground, including what appeared to be burned and discarded joints and flowers.
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The destruction appeared to be deliberate since other plaques on the mausoleum’s outer wall were seemingly untouched.
TMZ reported that when sources returned to the location hours after reporting the incident to police, Pop Smoke’s plaque had been replaced with a blank slab, caution tape had been put up and some of the debris had been cleaned up.
Pop Smoke was shot and killed around 4 a.m. on February 19, 2020, when suspects allegedly broke into a home in Hollywood Hills where he was staying. The Associated Press reports police believe they learned of the rapper’s whereabouts after his social media posts revealed the residence he was renting.
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Two men and two teens have since been charged in his death. Corey Walker, 19, and Keandre Rodgers, 18, both face the death penalty or life in prison after being charged with the murder that occurred during a robbery and a burglary. The other two suspects, ages 17 and 15, were each charged with one count of murder and robbery and will be tried in juvenile court.
Pop Smoke’s debut studio album Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon was released posthumously in July 2020. In March of this year, the album set a new record for the most weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s top rap albums chart, per PEOPLE’s Ally Mauch.