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NewsJune, 12 Rapper Silento sentenced to 30 years for killing cousin
Rapper Silento has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for killing his cousin. The Atlanta star, whose 2015 chart-topper Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae) spawned a viral dance craze, pleaded guilty to shooting and killing his cousin in 2021. Silento, real name Ricky Lamar Hawk, had been scheduled to stand trial this week over the death of Frederick Rooks, but took a plea deal on Wednesday 11 June. He pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, gun possession and concealing a death, but said he was mentally ill when the crimes were committed. The manslaughter charge was downgraded from a harsher malice murder count in his indictment, while Georgia prosecutors agreed to drop another felony murder charge. The judge sentenced Silento to 30 years in prison following the plea, with credit given for the four years spent on remand. Prosecutors claim Silento shot Rooks multiple times in February 2021 and then fled the scene. Silento allegedly admitted to killing Rooks during a post-arrest interview with investigators, and prosecutors say bullet casings recovered from the scene matched a gun found on the rapper when he was apprehended. A rep for Silento said when he was arrested in 2021 he had been "suffering immensely from a series of mental health illnesses". He was diagnosed with severe bipolar disorder in jail, according to court filings.
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