New York rapper Lil Tjay is still fighting for his life after being shot multiple times early Wednesday.
The 21-year-old was struck at around 12:08 a.m. while parked in an Edgewater, New Jersey, shopping center. The gunman, 27-year-old Mohamed Konate, approached the vehicle carrying Tjay and friends, 24-year-old Jeffrey Valdez and 22-year-old Antoine Boyd. He demanded their jewelry, and gunfire erupted at some point during the robbery. Tjay sustained was hit several times. Boyd was shot once in the hand.
Authorities say the “Pop Out” star sustained life-threatening injuries to his thoracic cavity, which is the chest area containing the heart and lungs. He remains unconscious, though his condition has been upgraded to stable. TMZ reported that there were some movements to his legs but no other significant changes. Konate was also shot during the confrontation. Police caught up with him at Lenox Hill Hospital in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, where he was being treated. They believe a co-conspirator of the robbery dropped him off at the hospital and fled. Konate has been charged with attempted murder, armed robbery, and gun transgressions. It remains unknown how he knew that Tjay and his friends would be in the area.
Boyd and Valdez also face gun charges, despite being victims of the robbery. They are both being held in Bergen County Jail. Konate is awaiting extraction back to New Jersey.
