Jacksonville rapper Foolio was shot and killed while celebrating his 26th birthday in Tampa on June 23, 2024.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Testimony continued Thursday in Tampa in the trial of four men accused of killing Jacksonville rapper Foolio, with jurors hearing from multiple witnesses who described the chaos and gunfire in the moments surrounding the deadly shooting.

Foolio, whose real name was Charles Jones II, was shot and killed on June 23, 2024, while sitting inside a vehicle parked in front of a Holiday Inn hotel in Tampa. The rapper had been in the city celebrating his 26th birthday.



This story continues below.

Three others were wounded in the shooting, those who were celebrating with Jones.

Isaiah Chance, Sean Gathright, Davion Murphy and Rashad Murphy are each charged with premediated first-degree murder and other offenses in connection to Jones’ death.

Prosecutors called several witnesses and victims to the stand on day two of the trial, many of whom recounted the confusion and panic as gunfire erupted.

One state witness, Adjhoa Randolph, testified that she had known Jones since the sixth grade and traveled to Tampa with his girlfriend, Armani Turner, for the rapper’s birthday celebration.

Randolph said she still vividly remembers the night of the shooting.

“I won’t forget it,” she said.

Another state witness, victim, and longtime friend of Jones, Geno Norris, testified that he was inside the same vehicle with Jones when the shooting happened.

Norris, who was seated in the back, said he had been asleep moments before.

“At first I thought we got into a car accident, before I looked up and saw the bullet holes and blood everywhere,” Norris said.

Following the shooting, Norris said he and Xavier Edwards, who had been shot while sitting in the driver seat next to Jones, made their way into the hotel lobby before going up to the third floor to seek help. He told jurors that once on the third floor of the hotel, Edwards fell up against a wall and pleaded, “don’t let me die.”

Norris later realized he had also been injured and was taken to the hospital, where he was treated and released a few hours later.

Under cross-examination, Norris testified that he did not know Rashad or Davion Murphy, and had never heard of Gathright prior to the case. He acknowledged he was familiar with Chance through social media.

Another victim of the shooting, Camia Bentley, testified that she had fled the hotel in a Nissan as shots were fired.

“It was just a lot of commotion going on, it was a lot of chaos, it was very chaotic,” she said.

Bentley later realized she had been grazed by a bullet on her right arm.

During cross-examination, Bentley testified that she had never heard of Gathright before his arrest.

Aliyah Albritton testified traveling from Jacksonville for Jones’ birthday weekend, and that she was familiar with both Jones and the gang rivalry between his associates and those connected to rapper Yungeen Ace.

Albritton testified knowing individuals on “both sides” of the conflict and that she had previously dated Yungeen Ace’s younger brother.

Under cross-examination, Albritton testified she did not see anything unusual leading up to the shooting, and said she does not know Rashad Murphy, Davion Murphy or Gathright.

The trial is expected to continue Friday.