Q Money has been found guilty of murder in the 2019 shooting death of Calvin Alexander Chappell.
On Monday (Sept. 26), the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office confirmed to XXL that a 12-person jury found Q Money, born Qamar Akee Williams, guilty of two counts of felony murder, one count of malice murder, one count of aggravated assault, one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and one count of possession of a firearm during commission of a felony on Sept. 23.
The charges stem from an incident on April 15, 2019, in which the Cleveland, Ohio rapper shot Calvin Alexander Chappell, who was also an aspiring rapper, inside a home in Decatur, Ga. Q Money is scheduled to be sentenced next week.
Q Money's legal saga began on April 15, 2019, when Atlanta police announced they were looking for the "Streetz Baby" rhymer in connection to the murder of Chappell. According to eyewitnesses, Q Money was in the living room of the home standing over the deceased victim, who had been shot in the side of the head. A roommate saw the shooting and ran to wake the victim's cousin. The pair then took the gun away from Q and forced him out of the house and locked the door.
When police arrived at the scene, they found several shell casings and firearms throughout the residence. Authorities believed that Q Money and the victim were friends as they were both up-and-coming rappers from Ohio. Apparently, Chappell was rooming with his cousin for a few days before he was killed.
Two days later, Q Money surrendered to police and was subsequently charged with felony murder. Following his arrest, Q Money's family maintained that Q was the victim and was acting in self-defense when he allegedly shot Chappell multiple times.
"We feel Qamar was a victim in this situation as well due to his life being completely being altered behind this event. Qamar is an energetic, enthusiastic young man and has no malice in his heart for anyone," read a statement from the rapper's family. "As the facts and evidence continue to become available, we are sure that they will show that Qamar acted in self-defense from feeling as though his life was at risk and being threatened. We are deeply saddened by the way the information that has been released portrays the night in question. We are here 100% to support our Son Qamar."
Since the news of Q Money’s conviction of murder, the rapper’s only statement has been from his Instagram account. In a message posted on Sept. 24, Q typed, "THEY PRAYED ON MY DOWNFALL, I JUST WANT MY STORY TO BE HEARD."
He also wrote in the caption, "I JUST WANT MY STORY TO BE HEARD [explosion emoji] How Can You Convict a Man On Tampered Evidence I Was Set Up. FACTZ [100 emoji]."
XXL has reached out to Q Money’s camp for comment.