Charles Jones, well known as Julio Foolio, was a great rapper from Jacksonville, Florida. He made music focused on inner-city violence and adversity. Being part of the 6-Block gang, his lyrical content completely told his real tale congenially. Unfortunately, his life came to an end on June 23, 2024, when he went to Tampa, a visit that he made for his birthday, and he was targeted by some other gang.
The shooting took place outside a Home 2 Suites hotel on McKinley Drive, near the University of South Florida. The attack summed up a very long and bloody rivalry by the gang Foolio belonged to, 6-Block, with two other rival outfits from northeast Florida—1200 Out East and ATK. He came to Tampa to have fun for his birthday, which ended in his death.
An investigation toward Foolio’s murder turned up a number of arrests, showcasing the various suspects and their affiliations.
Sean Gathright: <Used his mother’s 2008 Chevy Impala. Gathright is facing numerous charges including, but not limited to, two counts of Pre-Meditated First Degree Murder, Attempted Pre-Meditated Murder, and Tampering with Physical Evidence.
Rashad and Davion Murphy: Both are affiliated with the 1200 Out East gang. Rashad has already been arrested, but his cousin Davion is still at large. He is being charged over the murder, while an attempt by police to trace Davion is still on course.
Isaiah Chance: He is a member of the ATK gang and is charged with Pre-Meditated First-Degree Murder and Conspiracy to Commit Pre-Meditated First-Degree Murder. Alicia Andrews, 26, charged with Pre-Meditated First-Degree Murder with a Firearm and Conspiracy to Commit Pre-Meditated First-Degree Murder.
The rivalry among 6-Block, 1200 Out East, and ATK is age-old, with several murders littering its violent journey. This violence has immensely scarring experiences in the communities around, and the cycle as a result has one of revenge and bloodshed. The present murder of Foolio follows in the line of other killings occurring as a function of this rivalry.
The police investigation is still on as they continue hunting down—one last suspect—Davion Murphy. The police have assured all individuals associated with this incident will be taken to book and, for certain, the murderers of Foolio will be caught. The tragic death of Julio Foolio resonates still today as the investigation continues in the wake of gang violence and through the process of the law.
After his premature demise, this now really emphasizes the urgency of addressing the underlying causes of this violence in northeast Florida, but it does nothing to take away the legacy of Foolio, who was a rapper that spoke to the struggles of his community. The communities involved just keep dealing with loss and trying to break this cycle of gang-related killing that has plagued them.
