Family says lax security allowed killing of rapper Drakeo
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ANDREW DALTON
AP ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A lack of security allowed dozens of men to ambush rapper Drakeo the Ruler, who was beaten and stabbed to death backstage at a Los Angeles music festival, his family and their lawyers said Thursday.
Drakeo, 28, an acclaimed West Coast rapper whose legal name is Darrell Caldwell, was stabbed to death on Dec. 18 while he was backstage waiting to go on at the Once Upon A Time in LA festival at Exposition Park, which also featured Snoop Dogg, Al Green and 50 Cent.
Video played at the news conference of the moments leading up to the stabbing, which his attorneys called a “targeted assassination,” showed men in red pouring into into the fenced-off backstage area and attacking Caldwell and his small entourage. No security guards or police officers can be seen. Caldwell, who had knife wounds to his neck, died hours later at a hospital, authorities said.
The attorneys said that on Monday they will file a wrongful death and negligence lawsuit against the festival’s promoters.
The promoters did not directly address the allegations in response, saying in a statement that “Once Upon a Time in LA joins Drakeo’s family, friends, and fans in grieving his loss. The festival is continuing to support local authorities in their investigation as they pursue the facts.”
