‘This is how ruthless these kids have become’: 20-year-old murdered over ‘perceived slight’ in rap video, cops say

Left inset: Ronnell Scott (Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office/WXIX). Right inset: TreShawn Smith (Preston Charles Funeral Home). Background: The area near the fountain on Elm Street in Lockland, Ohio (Google Maps).

An Ohio man has been indicted on murder charges for allegedly gunning down a 20-year-old rapper from Cincinnati who made music videos “disrespecting” him and others as part of a “feud between two groups,” prosecutors say.

The “retaliatory shooting” stemmed from a “rap video” that was released in 2022 featuring victim TreShawn “Ace” Smith, who is described by the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office as a local “musician” caught up in the alleged feud.

Things got too personal for Ronnell Scott, 24, as authorities say he killed Smith in a midday shooting over a “perceived slight,” according to a prosecutor’s office press release. Smith was hanging out with friends Oct. 22, 2022, at the fountain on Elm Street in Lockland, about 10 miles north of Cincinnati, when Scott allegedly drove by and shot him in the head before fleeing, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office reports.

“Several interviews over the years helped authorities identify the killer,” the prosecutor’s office said. “The killing came after a feud between two groups that involved making rap videos disrespecting the other groups.”

Scott has been indicted on charges of purposeful murder, felony murder, felonious assault and aggravated murder. He faces up to life in prison if convicted, but he still hasn’t been arrested as of Sunday afternoon.

“These killings are senseless,” said Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich in a statement last week. “Nothing, especially a perceived slight in a rap video, is worth killing over,” the prosecutor said. “Through good investigatory work authorities identified Scott as the shooter. We never give up working to seek justice for victims.”

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Smith’s mother, Evvie Smith, had previously said that all she wanted in life was to see her son’s killer “be brought to justice,” according to local Fox affiliate WXIX, after going nearly three years without an indictment.

“This is how ruthless these kids have become,” she told the station after the slaying. “Whoever did this to him has a demonic spirit and needs to be prayed for.”

Describing her grief at the time, Evvie Smith added, “No parent should have to bury their child. No parent should have to cremate their child. No parent should have to put their child to rest. It’s not right and it’s not in the order it should go.”

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‘This is how ruthless these kids have become’: 20-year-old murdered over ‘perceived slight’ in rap video, cops say

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‘This is how ruthless these kids have become’: 20-year-old murdered over ‘perceived slight’ in rap video, cops say

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