YNW Melly no longer facing witness tampering charge

Rafael Olmeda, South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Jan 20, 2026

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Broward County prosecutors dropped witness tampering charges against Jamell YNW Melly Demons, the former rapper accused of the 2018 murders of two childhood friends and fellow artists after a late-night recording session in Fort Lauderdale.

Assistant State Attorney Alixandra Buckelew made the announcement in court Tuesday morning during a status conference. Jury selection in the case was scheduled to begin Wednesday.

In a memorandum released Tuesday, Buckelew said the state was left with little choice because Broward Circuit Judge Martin Fein has yet to rule on the admissibility of crucial evidence at the heart of their case. Melly is accused of using jailhouse go-betweens to pressure his ex-girlfriend against cooperating with detectives and investigators in the lead-up to his first murder trial in 2023, which ended in a hung jury. The ex-girlfriend never sat for a deposition and never testified.

Most of the tampering evidence came from recorded jail conversations involving a cellmate and Cortlen Henry, Melly’s former co-defendant in the murder case.

“Not having a ruling puts this critical evidence at risk,” Buckelew wrote. If Fein were to seat a jury and later rule against admitting the evidence, Buckelew wrote, the tampering allegations could not be brought up at the murder trial. The ex-girlfriend has also indicated she would be a hostile witness if they try to force her to testify in the tampering case.

“The evidence in this case is significant consciousness of guilt evidence (and) will be utilized against the defendant in the homicide trial,” Buckelew wrote.

Demons, 26, still faces the possibility of a death sentence if he is convicted on the murder charges. That trial is scheduled to begin next year.

Demons, a rising star in the rap world at the time, is accused of suddenly shooting his friends, Christopher “Juvy” Thomas Jr. and Anthony “Sakchaser” Williams, inside a Jeep after an overnight recording session in Fort Lauderdale on Oct. 26, 2018.

According to prosecutors and investigators, Demons was seated behind Henry, the driver, while Thomas and Williams sat on the passenger side. They were in Miramar when, without warning, Melly shot and killed the passengers, according to trial testimony. Then he worked with Henry to stage the scene to make it look like Thomas and Williams had been the victims of a drive-by, investigators said.

Medical experts testified that the shots that killed Thomas and Williams came from inside the car, from whoever was seated behind the driver. Surveillance video from outside the Fort Lauderdale recording studio showed Melly getting into that seat.

Defense lawyers argued there was no evidence Melly was still in the car when the shooting happened.

Last year Henry pleaded no contest to two counts of accessory to murder after the fact, never promising to testify against Melly. That plea freed the state to focus on Melly as the person they believe is responsible for committing the murders.

A phone call to Melly’s lawyer had not been returned as of early Tuesday afternoon.

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