Two men charged with robbing, killing Philly rapper LGP Qua earlier this month
Joshua Thomas-Coleman and Abdul Boyd have been charged with robbing and killing Qidere Johnson earlier this month.
Qidere Johnson, a.k.a. "LGP Qua," was shot and killed May 11 in what police say was a robbery. Two 19-year-olds have been arrested and charged with murder, robbery and related offenses.Read moreCourtesy of @lgp_qua
Two 19-year-olds have been arrested and charged with
shooting and killing Qidere Johnson, a Philadelphia rapper known as LGP Qua, whose death earlier this month drew shock and outrage in the community.
Joshua Thomas-Coleman and Abdul Boyd have been charged with murder, robbery, conspiracy, and related crimes after police said they attempted to rob Johnson of his chains, then shot him multiple times on May 11.
Boyd was taken into custody earlier this week, while Thomas-Coleman was charged a few days after the killing, court records show. It was not immediately clear how police linked them to the crime.
Johnson, 30, was seated in a car with a friend on the 3900 block of M Street around 4:30 p.m. when police said two men ran up with guns and attempted to rob them. One of the men tried to take the gold chains Johnson was wearing around his neck and, during a brief struggle, shot him in the chest, police said.
Johnson was rushed to Temple University Hospital but died shortly after arrival.
In the days after the killing,
police released photos and videos of two men they said were involved and recovered the car they fled in. Thomas-Coleman and Boyd appear to have been taken into custody shortly afterward.
Investigators are still searching for a third person.
Johnson’s death shook many people in the community, including city leaders, who had followed his personal and professional journey rapping about the challenges of many of the city’s youth. He had a substantial following, having released songs with well-known artists like French Montana and will.i.am.
He called himself the “voice of the youth,” and spoke often of the struggle — and strength — of children and families in some of the city’s poorest, most under-resourced neighborhoods.
As many young rappers tried to build music careers
writing songs about killing people and mocking their deaths, Johnson stayed true to himself and spoke truth to power, community members said, acting as a model for how young people could still make a name for themselves through songs advocating against violence.
“When everyone wanted to talk about killing everybody, he wanted to talk about the effects,” community activist Ameer Barber said after his death. “What the youth is going through in Philadelphia, he was painting that picture — the pain they felt, of not having a father around, the drugs out here in the street, the school system. … He exemplified what a lot of the kids in Philly really feel and he displayed it through music."
In the days after his death, city leaders and community members paid tribute to his life. City Council President Kenyatta Johnson introduced a resolution to honor his music and advocacy, and Council members stood for a moment of silence in his memory.
Johnson’s mother, Tamara Davis, stood grief-stricken before them and spoke briefly of her son — her only child — who was taken from her on Mother’s Day.
“I just want to say,” she said, “I love my son.”
