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Judge Chika Anyiam handed down the sentence following the unanimous guilty verdict, bringing an abrupt end to the murder-for-hire trial. The 35-year-old rapper, whose legal name is Markies Conway, had been free on bond throughout the proceedings but now faces spending the rest of his life behind bars.
The verdict came exactly six years after MO3, born Melvin Noble, was gunned down on Interstate 35 in Dallas on November 11, 2020.
Prosecutors accused Conway of arranging the killing through a $40,000 murder-for-hire agreement following a years-long feud between the two Dallas artists. Conway pleaded not guilty and denied participating in the plot.
During the trial, prosecutors argued that Conway financed the shooting carried out by Kewon White, who chased MO3 along a busy Dallas highway before opening fire.
MO3 attempted to escape on foot after being confronted on the interstate. White fired more than 40 rounds from an AK-47-style pistol, according to prosecutors. MO3 was fatally wounded, while a bystander was also shot and survived.
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The prosecution presented financial records, cellphone communications, surveillance evidence, and testimony intended to establish Conway’s role in arranging the killing.
One central piece of evidence involved a $40,000 cash withdrawal Conway made following MO3’s death. Prosecutors argued that the transaction, combined with communications between individuals connected to the shooting, supported their murder-for-hire case.
However, defense attorneys maintained that the prosecution failed to establish a direct financial connection between Conway and the gunman.
The defense also challenged the credibility of several witnesses, including rapper Theodore Thomas, known as Jose Bodega, who walked back earlier grand jury testimony involving the alleged payment.
Thomas testified that he had previously provided false information while facing serious federal criminal exposure.
Conway’s attorneys additionally questioned the cellphone evidence and argued that investigators failed to adequately examine alternative motives involving other individuals connected to the case.
Despite those arguments, jurors unanimously convicted Conway of capital murder.
Under Texas law, a capital murder conviction carries a mandatory life sentence without parole when prosecutors do not pursue the death penalty against an adult defendant.
White was separately convicted of capital murder in September 2026 and received the same sentence. Another defendant, Devin Brown, faces a separate capital murder case connected to MO3’s death.
Conway rose to prominence with his breakout single “That’s On Me” and later collaborated with artists including Quavo and Gucci Mane.
