Snapchat messages and a change of clothes: YNW Melly murder trial resumes after break
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
The YNW Melly double murder trial resumed Monday after a week break with a YNW associate shedding light on what went down at the studio on the night of the murders.
Treveon Glass, who made beats for victim Anthony Williams, said the group had booked the studio for a 12-hour recording session but didn’t stay the entire time because they were falling asleep. Glass’ testimony marked the first time a witness detailed an encounter with Melly or either of the victims that night.
Melly, whose real name is Jamell Demons, is accused of shooting his childhood friends Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr., in an alleged drive-by cover up after spending the night of Oct. 26, 2018, at a Fort Lauderdale recording studio. Williams and Thomas, both aspiring rappers with the YNW collective, were known as YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy, respectively.
The 24-year-old’s case is among the first being considered after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a law to lower the threshold for a death sentence to an 8-4 vote.
Glass, who was brought on the stand despite defense objections over him actively keeping up with trial coverage, said Williams was upset that everyone was sleeping during the session and tried to wake them up. But he didn’t see anything that looked like it could have escalated to murder.
Prosecutor Camille Smith asked Glass to identify the people caught on tape getting in the Jeep Compass — and in the red Mitsubishi — at the recording studio that night. Glass was also shown photographs from the studio and named Williams, Thomas, Melly and Henry when asked.
At one point, Smith flashed a photo of Melly and Louisiana rapper Fredo Bang on the screen. Glass identified them, too.
Fredo, who allegedly picked up Melly from the crime scene, has been someone prosecutors attemped to get on the witness stand. On June 29, he released song “Free Melly,” which speaks on the years-long attempts to subpoena him.
After leaving the recording studio, Glass and his friends went to Melly’s house. They later headed to Fredo’s home, where they mourned the deaths of Thomas and Williams. That’s where, Glass said, he noticed Melly had changed from the clothes he had on hours before.
Though asked about what happened at Fredo’s home, Glass remained tight-lipped.
“I’m not sure what nobody did,” he said. “I was grieving.”
Glass also mentioned going to Gifford, Melly’s hometown, days after the murder. There, he was pressed about Thomas’ and Williams’ deaths and had a Facebook conversation with Melly, displayed in court Monday.
“I showed dem n***** more love den Dey parents,” Melly said in a message. “Mane tell dem fuck dat if Dey think i did some shit like dat we can go to war n**** u know I would never do nun like dat.”
Throughout his testimony, Glass was uncooperative with both the state and the defense, frequently shaking his head and scoffing. He told defense attorney David Howard that he was only on the stand to avoid being jailed.
Glass isn’t the first uncooperative witness in the case. Felicia Holmes, the mother of Melly’s ex-girlfriend, was declared a “hostile witness.” The back-and-forth between Holmes and the state ended with a motion for a mistrial after she told defense attorney Stuart Adelstein she felt threatened by prosecutor Kristine Bradley.
Lead detective finally testifies
Miramar Police Detective Mark Moretti, whose name has been floated around since the beginning of the trial, spoke Monday about interviewing Henry after he showed to Memorial Hospital Miramar with Williams’ and Thomas’ bodies in October 2018. That recording was played to the jury during their first week hearing the case.
“He was [then] the victim of a crime,” Moretti said about his first encounter with Henry.
Moretti said police searched the scene where Henry alleged the drive-by took place but didn’t turn up any evidence. They then went to the recording studio and watched surveillance video, which captured Henry, Thomas, Williams and Melly hopping into the Jeep, with Melly sitting in the left rear passenger seat.
The detective told Bradley he had “looked into” someone with whom the group reportedly had beef. During opening statements, Howard claimed that Moretti saw Melly on tape, learned he was a rising star and got tunnel vision. Howard also alleged that other leads weren’t properly vetted or investigated.
“These are all unanswered questions,” Howard said on the first day of trial. “No investigation. Case closed. Let’s move on.”
After a conversation with the victims’ families, Moretti filed a search warrant for access to Melly’s Snapchat accounts. Pages of messages on the social media platform were dissected Monday.
“It’s Melly shawty,” one message read, establishing that it was the rapper’s account.
Others, written during an argument with his ex-girlfriend, said: “I keep Bortlen wit kuz at da end of the day he did one of a realist shit in my life.”
“Dis n**** saved my life he koming everywhere wit me kuz if dem crackers come grab him it’s my fault u forgot???”
Prosecutors also showed several videos from nearby businesses of the Jeep passing by and asked Moretti to explain some of the phone pings.
Adelstein objected to Moretti’s testimony on the grounds that FBI Special Agent Brendan Collins testified in late June that cellphone data couldn’t definitively point to a phone’s location and that some of the science isn’t reliable.
“That’s what the FBI agent testified to,” he said. “The environment is absolutely unreliable. He doesn’t even know how it works, and they never ever use it in any jurisdiction...”
Murphy, however, allowed Moretti to continue delving into the data. The detective later showed two videos of the drive from the recording studio to the crime scene. One was taken from inside a car at night and another from a helicopter during the day.
Moretti’s testimony will continue Tuesday at 9 a.m. The defense will have the opportunity to present its case starting Wednesday or Thursday.
