In February 2019,
Florida rapper YNW Melly was arrested for the murder
of his two best friends YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy.
Now three years later, his trial is finally about to begin and if convicted,
Melly could get the death penalty.
Let’s take a closer look at the case.
Melly was raised by a single mom in Gifford, Florida,
and hopped off the porch at a young age.
He started posting songs on SoundCloud in 2015,
then formed the YNW collective with his childhood friends Juvy, Sakchaser,
and Bortlen one year later.
He started blowing up with tracks like Virtual (Blue Balenciagas)
and Murder on My Mind.
But just as YNW was about to take over the industry, tragedy struck.
In October 2018,
Juvy and Sakchaser were brought to the hospital by YNW Bortlen.
Bortlen claimed they were shot in a drive-by,
and both of them were pronounced dead that night.
Then a few months later, Melly and Bortlen were both arrested.
Police claim that Bortlen’s story ain’t line up with the evidence.
According to authorities, Melly and Bortlen staged the murders to look like a drive-by,
but the exact motive still ain’t clear.
Sakchaser’s mom testified that it was all over a $200,000 deal that he was about to sign.
She claimed Sakchaser knew he was in danger, saying
“My son hysterically called me.
He was very concerned about my whereabouts.
He was concerned about his sisters’ whereabouts.
He’s concerned, like something is going to happen to us.
And he told me that he would not get his money.”
After Melly and Bortlen got arrested,
a video surfaced showing Melly’s mom saying she was threatened by Sakchaser,
which could be another motive behind the hit.
Melly’s lawyer Bradford Cohen tried to get him released on bond,
but the pandemic delayed the case and the rapper was stuck behind bars.
When he first got locked up, Melly told everyone that he was good.
He was still dropping music and showing off his Versace kicks,
but there was more trouble going on behind the scenes that fans ain’t know about.
It turns out that Melly been having some pretty serious issues in jail.
A disciplinary report stated that he’s been getting into fights with guards and inmates.
He ended up losing recreation and visiting rights for a while,
and even spent time in solitary
for illegal phone calls and threatening a guard.
Then he flooded his cell on purpose and got sent back to solitary.
Then, in February 2020,
Melly got into a fight with five other inmates and was hit with new charges.
Plus he was stuck in solitary for another 30 days and lost his privileges again.
Melly never had a chance to post bail,
but a judge released Bortlen on a $90,000 bond in May 2020
and put him on house arrest.
Instead of keeping his head down and enjoying his limited freedom,
Bortlen visited two strip clubs in Miami
and got arrested for violating his bond agreement.
Fans have been in the dark for three years about Melly’s trial,
but it looks like we’re finally going to find out what really happened that night.
The trial was supposed to begin on April 4th, but now it’s been pushed back
because of “unresolved legal issues.”
Even though the trial ain’t starting on time,
the jury selection process has already begun.
Depending on how long the jury selection takes,
the court could start bringing in witnesses next month,
but there’s been issues on that end too.
Melly’s ex-girlfriend and her mom were supposed to show up and testify in court,
but now they can’t be found.
Melly’s manager allegedly paid the ex $5K,
then she just dipped.
Melly’s mom also paid her car payment.
But his legal team says they were still dating at the time
and that’s why she was given the money.
There’s no concrete evidence that he paid her to stay quiet,
but witness tampering is something the courts don’t mess around with.
So, the prosecution will definitely be looking into it.
There was also a witness
who claimed Melly and Bortlen hid the gun used to kill Sakchaser and Juvy.
But that witness ghosted the prosecutors too.
These testimonies could have a major impact on the case,
but no one knows if the witnesses will actually show up when the trial begins.
Witnesses are crucial, because most of the evidence is circumstantial.
One important detail is that Melly’s cellphone was allegedly in the area
where the murders went down,
but Bortlen showed up to the hospital without him.
If that’s the case, it points to Melly being even more guilty.
There’s also 66 pages of DNA evidence
that the Broward Sheriff’s Office Crime Lab collected.
No one outside of the legal teams knows what’s in the documents,
but it might be evidence related to an oral swab that the state requested in 2021.
There was a yellow jacket found in the trunk of Bortlen’s car,
and the prosecutors wanted to determine if Melly’s DNA matched what they found on the jacket.
In April, Melly’s case took another hit
when a judge ruled that his tattoos can be used as evidence against him.
The prosecutors are trying to prove he’s a gang member
and that his street ties were a factor in the murders,
but there ain’t been much public evidence to prove he’s even affiliated.
A gang cop who’s working the case
claims that Melly swore a loyalty oath to the Gangster Killer Bloods,
but we probably won’t know the full story until the trial begins.
One of Melly’s opps also said he’s affiliated with the Bloods.
A Florida rapper named Crucial told Complex
that Melly is a member of the G-Shine set of the Bloods,
he explained “He’s loosely affiliated with the Bloods.
Every time you see him in the videos, he’s throwing up the signs
and disrespecting who he’s disrespecting.”
Crucial started beefing with Melly after the rapper dropped the track Home Invasion
and dissed people Crucial knows.
He told Complex “That’s where things happened.
Melly was sneak dissing.
From the outside looking in, people are not gonna know.
But for the people that’s involved, you’re going to know who he’s talking about.”
Even if the opps weren’t helping the prosecution,
Melly’s helping them do their job by self-snitching on social media.
After Sakchaser and Juvy were killed, Melly sent an Instagram message that said
“I did that,” then two minutes later he sent “Shhhh.”
There’s no concrete evidence to link the messages to the murders,
but the timing is questionable enough for the prosecution to bring it up in court.
To make matters worse, the person Melly was messaging later sent
“It’s a sig 9 on the market,”
and Melly replied “I want it.”
Then the seller allegedly named a price for the gun and said “It’s 460.”
So the messages make it seem like Melly killed his homies,
bragged about it, then tried to buy another gun all in the same day.
Right now these are all just allegations,
but it definitely ain’t a good look.
There’s also forensic evidence that the public don’t know about.
Everything from the gunshot ballistics,
to footprints left at the scene have been admitted into evidence
and both sides of the case will be bringing in experts to go over every little detail.
Once the trial actually starts,
it will take around a month for both sides to present their case.
But this is a death penalty trial,
so if Melly gets convicted of the murders
there will be a second phase of the trial a few months later.
The entire point of the second phase
is for the jury to decide if Melly deserves the death penalty
or if they’ll just give him life in prison.
Melly’s legal team already has a list of relatives and psychiatrists
ready to stand trial, but hopefully it don’t get that far.
Melly’s trial being a death penalty case also makes jury selection more complicated.
The state needs jurors who are open to the death penalty,
but not anyone that’s too enthusiastic about it.
Facing the death penalty is bad enough,
but Melly also has family drama going on now too.
Melly’s homie YNW JGreen recently hopped on Instagram Live
and aired out Melly’s manager 100K Track
for ripping off his mom Jamie King and brother YNW BSlime.
At first it sounded like another rapper was getting taken advantage of by their manager,
but then Melly set the record straight on a phone call from prison
and called his own mom a liar.
He said “Man listen,
everybody who entertaining that **** or whatever going on bruh
that is not what it is bruh.
My momma be lying, my momma got anxiety issues.
Her ass triggered bruh.
You know what I’m saying?
She feels some type of way
because she feels like my brother is supposed to be bigger, or whatever bruh.
Nobody bucking my brother on no money.
If Track ****** my brother on money that mean I’m ****** my brother on money
and I’d never do that to my little brother.”
Everybody who,
everybody who entertaining that **** or whatever going on bruh
that is not what it is bruh. My momma be lying, My momma got anxiety issues
Her ass trigger bruh, you know what I'm saying.
She feel that type of way because she feel like my brotha supposed to be bigger
or whatever bruh.
Nobody bucking my brother on no money.
If Track ****** my brother on money that mean I’m ****** my brother on money
and I'd never do that to my lil brother.
Melly says Track been the one holding it down for him while he’s locked up,
and that he’s the only person he can really trust.
Even though he cleared it up for the fans, the situation is obviously affecting him.
Melly said “I’m fighting for my life right now.
I got more shit going on, you get what I’m saying?
But all that shit they talking about is not what it is.
J Green is out of pocket… he don’t even know what’s going on.”
When family gets involved in business,
things can get messy quick.
But after Melly called out JGreen and his mom for lying about the money issues,
Track went on the Tippie Toe Podcast and let everyone know
it’s all love between him and Melly’s family.
He said “Listen, I love BSlime.
That’s my little brother. Don’t get it twisted.
And like I said, Jamie, that’s that man’s mother…
We’re always gonna be cool because I gotta stand by my little dawg too… It’s all love.”
Melly’s mom Jamie later said she loves him no matter what,
but she’s “completely heartbroken” over the situation.
Luckily it seems like the beef between all of them ain’t too serious,
because Melly needs all the support he can get right now.
As of now, most of the evidence in his case sounds circumstantial.
Without a murder weapon, surveillance footage, or a recorded confession,
it’s gon be tough for the prosecution to convict him for two murders.
A big part of the trial is going to come down to who shows up on the witness stand.
If the unknown witness who allegedly saw Melly and Bortlen hide the gun testifies,
it could be over for Melly.
And if the prosecutors are able to prove that he tampered with a witness
by having Track pay his ex $5K bands,
that’s going to make the situation even worse.
But most of the evidence that the jury will see ain’t been made public,
so it’s tough to say what really went down.
Unless the trial gets pushed way back for some reason,
the first phase should be finished sometime in the summer.
Then IF he’s convicted, the second phase is scheduled for September 12.
Hopefully his name will be cleared if he really is innocent.
Sakchaser and Juvy was two of his best friends,
and the alleged motive is suspicious too.
If Sakchaser was about to sign a $200,000 label deal, why would Melly want him dead?
It ain’t like that money was going to go to Melly instead if Sakchaser was gone.
The other rumored motive was that Sakchaser
threatened Melly’s mom Jamie with a gun,
so Melly took him out.
But the only evidence that ever happened was Jamie talking about it on Live.
And after the drama between her and 100K Track,
Melly made it clear that she got some legit mental issues going on and can’t be trusted.
Melly and his team seem pretty confident they can beat the case,
but the prosecution wouldn’t be seeking the death penalty
if they ain’t think they could convict him.
Hopefully he’ll get a fair trial and the actual truth will come out,
but we’re gonna have to wait a little longer until we know the full story.
This case is still developing so tap in for updates.