Man Says He Received $800 Of The $40k Promised To Him To Kill Rapper Young Dolph At Memphis Cookie Shop
Day one of the Young Dolph murder trial contained major alleged details involved with the killing of the Memphis rapper, including one man testifying that he and a second person were the ones who shot and killed the 36-year-old in November 2021.
Justin Johnson sat on trial on Monday on charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and being a felon in possession of a gun. Cornelius Smith, who also faces conspiracy and murder charges, testified that it was he and Johnson seen on the surveillance video outside the Memphis cookie shop where Young Dolph was killed.
In opening statements, Johnson’s attorney, Luke Evans, told the jury that they should not trust Smith’s testimony because he was trying to save himself.
Smith testified that he and Johnson killed Young Dolph after Big Jook, the brother of rapper Yo Gotti, put a hit on him. He also claimed that he and Johnson were promised $40,000 each to carry out the hit on Young Dolph, but he was only initially paid $500 on top of a later payment of $300 and received nothing afterward. Smith alleged that Hernandez Govan, who has been alleged as the mastermind behind the hit on Dolph, was supposed to receive $20,000.
Deputy District Attorney Paul Hagerman explained during opening statements that Young Dolph, who was extremely popular in the Memphis area, was determined to make it on his own as an artist under his own label named Paper Route Empire.
Hagerman went on to explain that Yo Gotti-founded rival record label Cocaine Muzic Group (now known as Collective Music Group) and wanted Young Dolph to work for them, but he turned them down. Young Dolph later wrote diss tracks directed at the label, its artists, and its "number two person," Big Jook.
Attorney Luke Evans and Justin Johnson, the man accused of shooting Young Dolph, listen to Judge Lee V. Coffee during an appearance in the Shelby County Criminal Court in Memphis, Tenn., on July 14, 2023. (The Commercial Appeal)
Smith went on to testify that the original plan was to take out Young Dolph, whose real name is Adolph Thornton Jr., at a Thanksgiving turkey drive in the city but recognized his flashy Corvette and followed the rapper into the parking lot of a bakery named Makeda's Butter Cookies, which is where the shooting took place.
Smith claimed that everything occurred on the same day as his daughter's birthday.
"Man, I was trying to make it right for her," Smith said while being questioned. "I ain't have no money, I'm trying to get some money that day. So I'm trying to make sure my baby girl have a beautiful birthday."
Dolph had been shot multiple times in September 2017 after a fight outside of a Los Angeles hotel. Earlier that same year, his SUV was shot at over 100 times in Charlotte, North Carolina.