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Who Is Silento? ‘Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)’ Rapper Charged With Murdering His Cousin
Silento, the rapper behind the mega-hit “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),” has been arrested and charged with murder after his cousin, Frederick Rooks, was found dead.
The DeKalb County Police Department confirmed the 23-year-old, whose real name is Richard “Ricky” Lamar Hawk, was taken into custody on February 1.
He is currently being held in DeKalb County Jail and is charged with one count of felony murder. It is unclear if Silento has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
Keep scrolling to learn more about the “Bad” artist.
Did Silento kill his cousin?
On January 21, Rooks, 34, was found with multiple gunshot wounds in the middle of a residential street in Panthersville, Georgia, according to police. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
DeKalb police Lt. Rod Bryant told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at the time that investigators believed Rooks knew the residents from one of the houses in the neighborhood.
“We’re still doing a little bit more investigation,” he said. “The people in the house know him, but he really don’t live there, so we’re trying to see what’s going on.”
Has Silento been arrested before?
Silento’s arrest comes four months after he was charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon in Los Angeles.
According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Silento had walked into an unlocked stranger’s home and tried to hit two people with a hatchet before one of them was able to disarm him. It is unclear if he formally responded to these charges.
Silento was out on bail for another arrest in Santa Ana, California, at the time of the incident, prosecutors said.
A spokesperson for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department told People that Silento had been booked on August 28 on felony inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant in a domestic violence incident.
What is Silento’s net worth?
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the Georgia native is worth $5 million. His debut single, “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),” was released in 2015 and certified 5x platinum. The music video has been watched more than 1.7 billion times on YouTube.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
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