American rapper Silento, best known for his 2015 hit ‘Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)‘, has been arrested and charged with the alleged murder of his cousin, Frederick Rooks.
As per sources, the rapper, whose real name is Ricky Hawk, is currently being held in the DeKalb County jail in Georgia, U.S.A.
The Murder Charge
The DeKalb County Police Department announced the news in a tweet on Monday, Feb 1st, writing: “Today, Ricky Hawk, 23, was arrested for the murder of his cousin Frederick Rooks, 34. On January 21, the DeKalb County Police Department investigated Rooks’ death after he was found shot on Deep Shoals Circle. Hawk is in the DeKalb County Jail charged with Murder”.
A representative for Silento, Chanel Hudson, told a news source that the family’s trying to move forward as a close-knit group.
On January 21st, police responded to a 3:30 a.m. shots-fired call and found Rooks dead at the scene with multiple gunshot wounds, according to another news source.
Battle With Mental Health Illness
Silento’s rep also claims he has been suffering from a “series of mental health illnesses” for years, including depression. In 2019 after he appeared on a talk show to talk about depression, the rapper apparently never followed through with any medical treatment. His team feel that’s when things started to unravel.
Silento was also arrested in August last year for assault with a deadly weapon after being accused of walking into an unlocked stranger’s home in Los Angeles. The rapper then started swinging a hatchet at the two people inside before one of them disarmed him. A day prior to that arrest, he was held on domestic violence charges at a home in California. In October, he was arrested for allegedly driving 143 mph in DeKalb County.
Recently, he released the single ‘Swish’ on January 28th. He also released an album, “Skyrolyrics”, in October 2020.
By: Anjana Sathyanarayan