As the Eric Holder trial for Nipsey Hussle’s death continues, a witness named Shermi Villanueva, who was also injured during the 2019 shooting, recalled the rapper’s last words.
“’He shot me. He shot me,’” Villanueva said, remembering Hussle’s final words per HotNewHipHop. “I heard it, and then I saw Nipsey fall. When I looked and see Nipsey, I started to run.”
Villanueva’s uncle, Kerry Lathan, was also shot along with himself and Hussle.
“[My Uncle] was like, ‘I’m shot also.’” Villanueva continued, “I told him, ‘Don’t move,’ because he said he was shot in his back, and it was possible he could have a spinal injury.”
ABC7 reports, “In addition to shooting Hussle at least 10 times, Holder kicked the rapper in the head before fleeing,” Deputy District Attorney John McKinney told the jury assembled in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.
Holder was reportedly upset with Hussle after the late rapper allegedly accused him of being a snitch.
“Respect is everything. Reputation is everything. It’s a different play on respect than you’re used to,” McKinney explained to the court in the prosecution’s opening statement. “It’s kind of a perverse definition of respect … a lot of blood has been shed, not only in that gang, but in gangs across the county, over this concept of respect.”
“He clearly thought about what he was going to do before he did it,” McKinney added.
Holder faces one count of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, the outlet reports. If convicted, Holder could face life in prison.
Watch the footage from inside the courtroom below from ABC7: