Updated: 8:49 p.m. November 19, 2008
T.I. expected to testify Friday in Cincinnati trial
FROM ONLINE REPORTS
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Atlanta rapper T.I. is expected to testify Friday in the Cincinnati trial of a man accused of shooting to death T.I.’s childhood friend and business associate Philant Johnson, according to Cincinnati.com.
Trial began Tuesday for one of two men accused in an attack on T.I. and his entourage during their stop in Cincinnati two years ago.
Hosea Thomas, 34, and his brother, Padron Thomas, 40, were arrested in June of this year. T.I., born Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., narrowly avoided serious injury during the May 2006 shootout in Cincinnati.
• Photos: Philant Johnson's 2006 funeral
According to opening day coverage by Cincinnati.com, prosecutors told a jury that they are sure Hosea Thomas fired the fatal shot while Padron Thomas drove a Jeep chasing the van occupied by T.I. and his entourage.
Cincinnati.com reported that Cincinnati police officer Dom Meece testified that the scene inside T.I.’s van was “something out of a horror movie” with blood dripping off the ceiling and brain matter on the floor.
Padron Thomas is expected to be the star witness against his brother.
Police said the 2006 shooting apparently carried over from a squabble at an after-hours party that T.I., his entourage and the suspects attended in a Cincinnati-area nightclub called Ritz while T.I. was in town for a performance.
