A father from California was found guilty of killing PnB Rock in 2022 after telling his son, who was 17 at the time, to rob and kill the rapper while he was having lunch with his girlfriend. PnB Rock, whose real name is Rakim Allen, was 30 years old.
Based on a two-week trial and four hours of discussion, a jury in Los Angeles County found 42-year-old Freddie Trone guilty of murder, theft, and plotting to steal. This was reported by the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office and the Associated Press.
According to the AP, prosecutors said during the trial that Trone sent his teenage son to Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles in South Los Angeles to commit the crime and then helped with it after it was done. Because he was so young when he was killed, Trone’s boy has not been named in public.
A half-hour before Allen was killed, Trone was seen in the parking lot on security video. There was also a guy named Tremont Jones, who gave Allen a fist bump in the video. The rapper of “Selfish” was wearing pricey gold on his wrist at the time, according to the AP.
Jones is thought to have told Trone that the rapper was there and that he was wearing expensive clothes. Because he helped kill the Philadelphian, he was found guilty of two counts of robbery and one count of plot. The AP says that his lawyer, David Haas, said he will file an appeal.
Trone admitted that he was in the parking lot looking for people for his nearby beauty shop while he was testifying. But he denied having anything to do with the killing. He agreed instead that the murder was “heinous” and called his son “dangerous,” the news source said.
Trone’s 19-year-old son has been charged with murder. He is still in a juvenile detention center, though, and the AP says that a judge said he is not old enough to stand trial. According to the L.A. District Attorney’s Office, a minor will go through “mental competency proceedings” on August 28.
Allen was having lunch with his lover Stephanie Sibounheuang on September 12, 2022. He and Stephanie have a daughter together, who is now 4 years old. Someone approached them and “demanded” Allen give him his jewelry. After that, he shot Allen several times and then stole some of his things.
After running away to Las Vegas for about two weeks, Trone, his wife Shauntel Trone, and his son were charged. It’s not clear what part Shauntel played in the murder and theft. In July, she pleaded “not guilty” to being an accomplice after the fact. Her sentencing date is January 16, 2025.
Jones and Trone are set to be sentenced on August 27.
The DA for Los Angeles County, George Gascón, said, “Today, justice has been done for Mr. Allen and his family who have been through unbearable pain losing a loved one to such senseless violence.” “Our deepest condolences go out to them and the whole community.” Thank you to the Community Violence Reduction Division of my office for always working to get Mr. Allen justice and make Mr. Trone and Mr. Jones answer for their actions. Those who put our community’s safety and well-being at risk should know that our office will not stop pursuing charges and will do everything possible to bring criminals to justice.
People asked Winston McKesson, Freddie’s lawyer, for a response but did not hear back right away.
