Per recent reports, a third man has been charged in connection with the murder of rapper Adolph “Young Dolph” Thornton Jr.
Earlier this week, two men named in connection to the murder of the late rapper were taken into police custody, per law enforcement officials, theGrio reported.
Justin Johnson, 23, was arrested Tuesday on a first-degree murder warrant, while Cornelius Smith, who was already behind bars at the time, was indicted for first-degree murder and other charges. Now, officials have revealed that Shundale Barnett, 27, was also charged in connection to the murder.
Barnett was charged with being “an after-the-fact accessory” in Thornton’s Nov. 17 killing, per a report from Rolling Stone. U.S. Marshal Tyreece Miller confirmed that Barnett was identified as “a passenger in a vehicle pulled over at a truck stop just outside Terre Haute, Indiana, Tuesday afternoon amid a national manhunt for Justin Johnson.”
“Shundale Barnett is a person who, we believe, was providing assistance to Justin since we’ve been looking for him,” Miller shared during a press conference on Wednesday. Barnett is reportedly being held on a state warrant in Indiana, “pending extradition to Shelby County, Tennessee.”
Thornton was killed outside of a bakery in Memphis last November after doing charity work there. He was set to hand out turkeys at the St. James Missionary Baptist Church just two days before his untimely death.
As TheGrio‘s Matthew Allen reported late last year, Thornton Jr. was laid to rest in Memphis, where he was known as a pillar of the community. He had a reputation for giving back by donating to local charities and to the athletic department of his high school, Hamilton High School.
Days after his death, community activists, church volunteers and members of Paper Route Empire still held the turkey giveaway in his honor.
The rapper made his debut six years ago with his 2016 album King of Memphis. He found success under his own record label, Paper Route Empire, where he continued to release material. His seventh album, Rich Slave, reached number four on the Billboard 200, making it his highest-charting success.
Have you subscribed to theGrio’s podcast “Acting Up”? Download our newest episodes now!
TheGrio is now on Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and Roku. Download theGrio today!