Robert Wayne Lee II was shot and killed on September 29 in Pontiac, Michigan
A Michigan teenager has been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of a man who was known for exposing alleged sexual predators online.
A 17-year-old boy, who was 16 at the time of the Sept. 29 shooting in Pontiac, was charged Thursday as a juvenile with murder, carrying a concealed weapon and firearms, according to an Oakland County news release. The prosecution was obtained by PEOPLE.
The victim, Robert Wayne Lee II, a 40-year-old man known online as “Boopac Shakur,” was allegedly shot with a semi-automatic handgun at the Universal Coney Island restaurant, according to the release.
The boy’s identity has not been released, and if convicted, a judge will have the option of sentencing him as an adult, a juvenile or a “mixed sentence” of “juvenile rehabilitation and adult sentencing,” according to prosecutors. office.
Woman charged with murder after her son’s body (42) was discovered in a wooden box behind a ‘false wall’
According to the statement, Lee entered the restaurant around 10:30 p.m., while the teenager and his 18-year-old friend were already seated inside. Security footage then showed Lee approaching the friend, before the younger teenager pulled a gun from his waistband and fired multiple rounds.
The teenagers then fled the restaurant, and Lee eventually died of his injuries at a local hospital, prosecutors said, also noting that no evidence suggested the altercation between the teen and Lee stemmed from a “stab operation.”
“This is a tragic incident,” prosecutor Karen McDonald said in a statement.
“The physical altercation turned deadly almost instantly because this individual decided to illegally carry a concealed, deadly weapon and then use it,” she added. “The vast majority of gun deaths, including this one, are preventable.”
According to News from DetroitLee built up an online following for arranging meetings with grown men while posing as a teenage girl in the hope of catching pedophiles.
The younger teenager, who has been in custody since the Sept. 29 shooting, faces additional charges in connection with the Sept. 20 shooting outside the supermarket, including felony firearms and assault with intent to murder.
“This shooting was not immediately reported to the police and only after the mother of the person who was shot reported suspicious activity near her home that she believed was related to the shooting and potential gang activity,” the statement said.
According to the prosecutor’s office, the murder charge is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, and the concealed weapons charge could send the teenager an additional 5 years in prison. The charge of assault with intent to murder is punishable by life in prison, and the firearm offense carries a mandatory sentence of two years.
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Jackie Lee, the deceased’s mother, spoke to ABC’s WXYZ after the shooting last year, when she described her son as “fearless” and “on a mission.”
“It was hard on my whole family,” she said. “My whole family was pretty much gripped by the fear I’ve had since his journey started. I mean my granddaughter, she’s 7. She’s used to him taking her to school in the morning and picking her up.”
A GoFundMe campaign started last year for Lee’s funeral expenses and to raise money for his daughter Ah’vyana has since brought in $15,000 for the family.
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Source: HIS Education