One man is sentenced to 31 years to life and another to 12 years in prison in the case of rapper PnB Rock, who was killed in a gun robbery in South LA – Orange County Register

By TERRI VERMEULEN KEITH

COMPTON – A man convicted in connection with the robbery and shooting of rapper PnB Rock at a South Los Angeles restaurant was sentenced Monday to just over 31 years to life in state prison.

Supreme Court Judge Connie R. Quinones denied the defense’s requests for a retrial of Freddie Lee Trone’s case and to overturn the jury’s murder verdict against the 42-year-old defendant in connection with the rapper’s killing on September 12, 2022.

The judge found that Trone was “not the shooter” and did not enter Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles on West Manchester Avenue. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be held responsible.

Trone was found guilty on August 7 on one count each of murder and conspiracy to commit robbery, along with two counts of second-degree robbery in a case involving the 30-year-old rapper and his fiancée, who were found to have jewelry stolen.

Co-defendant Tremont Jones, 46, who was convicted of two counts of second-degree robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery – but was not charged with murder in this case – was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

The defendants were charged along with Trone’s then 17-year-old son, whose case is currently being tried in juvenile court.

The rapper’s mother, Deannea Allen, called her son “a shining light in our family” and said, “He was our Michael Jackson.”

“We are all suffering, every single one of us, including your family,” the victim’s mother told the defendant, who stood behind his lawyer in the courtroom in Compton. “I really, really hope that you are remorseful and sorry for what you have done.”

The rapper’s aunt, Aqueelah Brown, called her nephew’s death a “devastating loss” and said that “his life was taken by an act of senseless violence.”

“We are heartbroken and our lives will never be the same again,” she said.

In a statement read by Brown on her behalf, her niece wrote: “I truly hope these criminals get what they deserve… I truly hope you will suffer as much as we have.”

PnB Rock, whose real name is Rakim Allen, was shot once in the chest and twice in the back by an assailant wearing a ski mask while the rapper and his girlfriend were eating lunch. The assailant demanded jewelry.

Assistant District Attorney Timothy Richardson told the jury that Trone “sent his son on a coordinated operation to steal watches, rings and necklaces from an individual,” while defense attorney Winston McKesson countered that Trone’s teenage son acted independently of his father and that the “only conclusion consistent with justice is that Freddie Trone is not guilty of these charges.”

The prosecutor told jurors that the motive for the crime was “about half a million dollars worth of jewelry,” arguing that Trone drove his son to the restaurant and back home, but never entered the establishment himself while the rapper was there.

The prosecution alleges that Jones fist-bumped the rapper in the restaurant and then passed information about the entertainer’s jewelry to Trone.

Richardson noted “how difficult it is to accept that a father would do such a thing to his son.”

The prosecutor told jurors that Trone, his son and Jones carried out “coordinated actions” that were “not accidental.”

Trone vigorously protested his innocence on the witness stand, telling the jury: “I wasn’t there. I didn’t tell anyone not to do anything.”

Trone testified that his son and his own vehicle went missing and that he later found his son in the vehicle with three other “juveniles.”

Trone’s lawyer told jurors there was “no evidence of a conspiracy” to rob the rapper, and accused investigators of having already formed an opinion about “who they thought was guilty” and “only looking for evidence that pointed to guilt” while ignoring everything that pointed to his client’s innocence.

“You have no evidence that my client planned anything,” McKesson said, telling jurors that the prosecution’s goal was to create a “dislike” for Trone.

The defense attorney told reporters outside court that he believes his client would not have been charged with murder if he had not lived in the area and was African-American. If the crime had taken place in Beverly Hills, he would have been charged with accessory after the fact.

After the verdict, McKesson told City News Service he was “disappointed” with the outcome of the trial and announced that Trone would appeal his conviction.