As if we can take any more pain and suffering right now, New Orleans is mourning the loss of local musician and rapper, Marrero Desto.
The 35-year-old rapper was shot and killed by a Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputy on Wednesday when Reyes allegedly pointed a weapon at deputies after a short chase.
A video recorded by a camera attached to a Jefferson Parish Sheriff deputy’s stun gun captured the encounter, where one the deputies shouts, “Move,” and another can be heard shouting, “Gun,” before the sound of gunfire rings out.
Reyes’ family members and friends contend footage from other video cameras refutes Jefferson Parish Sheriff Office’s version of events, said Reyes’ little brother, Alfonso Rowland. They remain skeptical of the incident.
“I know in my heart and my mind, it couldn’t have happened like that,” Reyes’ sister, Librada Turner, told Nola.com. “To try to hurt somebody and shoot somebody, that’s totally out of his character.”
Reyes’ family has been stunned by the news of his death, which occurred two days after a 45-year-old Black man, George Floyd, died at the hands of a vicious White police officer, who had a knee on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
Family and friends of the rapper held a peace walk near the site of his killing earlier this week while they await the results of the autopsy, which is scheduled for Friday, according to the Jefferson Parish Coroners’ Office.