An 18-year-old suspected of shooting a 43-year-old man related to Cortlen Henry, who was arrested for murder alongside YNW Melly in 2019, has been arrested for attempted murder. TC Palm reports that Indian River County, Florida deputies arrested Traveion Banks on Wednesday on a warrant for attempted first-degree murder. It is suspected that the man who was shot was targeted because of his relation to Henry, who is also known as YNW Bortlen.
In a court hearing on Thursday, YNW Bortlen's lawyer Fred Haddad also told the judge that Bortlen's father had recently been shot.
The man related to Henry was shot three times in the back on Sept. 14, and was promptly flown to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center & Heart Institute, Fort Pierce. When the man was able to speak after his surgery for his bullet wounds, he informed the authorities that there were two shooters. Numerous anonymous tips lead them to believe Banks was one of the shooters involved, and it was a retaliation shooting for the 2018 killings Melly and Henry were arrested for.
Henry was released from county jail this June on $75,000 bond while Melly remains behind bars. He is currently on house arrest and charged with murder and accessory to murder in connection with the Oct. 26, 2018 shooting of the rappers known as YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy, while Melly is charged with two counts of murder. Both of the men arrested for the 2018 shootings have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
