Rapper Silentó Charged with Murdering His Cousin

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Silentó, known for his 2015 hit “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae),” has been arrested and charged with the murder of his cousin, Frederick Rooks.

Monday on Twitter, the DeKalb County Police Department released a statement announcing that the rapper, born Richard "Ricky" Lamar Hawk, was taken into custody and charged.

As of this writing, online jail records show that the 23-year-old is currently being held at DeKalb County Jail on one count of felony murder. It is unclear if he has retained a lawyer.

Per police, on January 21, Rooks was found with multiple gunshot wounds in the middle of a residential street in Panthersville, Georgia. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

As reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, DeKalb police Lt. Rod Bryant says Rooks may have contacts to residents at a nearby house.

“I think it is connected to this house,” Bryant said last month. “We’re still doing a little bit more investigation. The people in the house know him, but he really don’t live there, so we’re trying to see what’s going on.”

Bryant also added that the victim had a history with police.

In September, Silentó was charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon after police allege he walked into a stranger's unlocked home and tried to hit two people with a hatchet. Reportedly, one of the alleged victims was able to disarm him.

If convicted of the September incident, the musician could receive a maximum sentence of six years in prison.