Tay-K's rise in popularity has been widely attributed to his extensive criminal record. Even before he was an adult, the Texas rapper was facing a slew of serious charges, including capital murder; however, his mounting legal troubles didn’t seem to hurt his fledgling music career—in fact, they seemingly advanced it.
United States marshals apprehended Tay-K on June 30, 2017, after the rapper spent three months on the lam. Tay-K then started gaining notoriety for his track titled “The Race,” which addressed his run from the law, and eventually inked a deal with 88 Classic while he was behind bars.
On Thursday, the families of Tay-K’s alleged shooting victims filed a lawsuit against the now-18-year-old rapper, claiming he profited off his crime spree and placed his money in a trust to keep it away from his victims.
“The principle behind this case is that people and corporations shouldn’t profit from violent crimes against the innocent,” attorney Brian Butcher told the Star-Telegram. “Taymor McIntyre (Tay-K’s legal name) became a threat to society, possibly with the encouragement of others, in order to promote sales of his music. I want those sales to compensate his victims, not to enrich a record company that supports a child thug.”
Butcher is representing the families of Ethan Walker and Zachary Beloate, who were shot during a 2016 robbery allegedly carried out by Tay-K and six others. Walker was killed during the incident, and Beloate survived.
The suit also lists five of Tay-K’s alleged accomplices as defendants, alongside 88 Classics owner Joshua White, and Tay-K's manager Ezra Averill. The plaintiffs claim “[Tay-K] was encouraged and/or manipulated by his manager and 88 Classic Records to commit crimes in order to promote sales of his music.” The suit also states that the sale of Tay-K's music rights established a “fraudulent conveyance of assets” in an effort to avoid giving money to creditors and Tay-K’s alleged victims. “The transfers were made with the intention to defraud creditors and without McIntyre receiving reasonably equivalent value in exchange for the transfers."
According to legal documents, Tay-K’s earnings—listed at more than $236,000—were placed in an irrevocable trust that is managed by White.
Walker and Beloate’s families are seeking more than $1 million in damages.
About a month ago, Tay-K was hit with a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the mother of Mark Anthony Saldivar, who was allegedly killed by the rapper in 2017. Lucia Saldivar is also seeking $1 million.
Tay-K is currently incarcerated at Tarrant County Jail in Fort Worth, Texas. He recently gave an update on his case during a phone interview with No Jumper host Adam22.
“They denied my bond, but we appealed it. So, we're waiting for the appeal. That should be coming any day now. They're gon' give me a bond. I just gotta wait,” he said. “I'm working on my G.E.D. right now [...] I spend my time doing a lot of different shit. I be chillin’.”
Check out the interview below.
