Ksoo Murder Cases: Trial, Life Sentence, and Guilty Plea

Hakeem “Ksoo” Robinson, the Jacksonville drill rapper at the center of the Ksoo murder cases, is serving life in prison without parole for the January 2020 shooting of rapper Charles “Lil Buck” McCormick, and in February 2026 he pleaded guilty to a second killing, the 2019 murder of 16-year-old Adrian “Lil Bibby” Gainer Jr., adding another ten years to his sentence. Both cases came out of a violent feud inside Jacksonville’s drill rap scene that killed several people and pulled in members of Robinson’s own family.

How the Feud Started

On January 16, 2019, Robinson’s half-brother, 25-year-old aspiring rapper Willie “Boss Goon” Addison Jr., was shot and killed after performing at a gentlemen’s club on Baymeadows Road.¹ Addison and five others were traveling in a Chevrolet Tahoe when gunmen in another vehicle opened fire alongside them. Robinson’s father, Abdul Robinson Sr., was in the Tahoe and survived a gunshot to the back.² No one was publicly charged in Addison’s killing. Prosecutors would later argue that Charles McCormick mocked Addison’s death in a song, which set off the retaliation that followed.

The Murder of Lil Buck

On January 15, 2020, 23-year-old Charles McCormick was shot and killed at Dames Pointe Plaza on Merrill Road, moments after leaving a staffing agency where he had picked up a job assignment.³ According to getaway driver Dominique “Butta” Barner, who later cooperated with prosecutors, Robinson and his co-defendants tracked McCormick to the plaza and waited hours. When McCormick walked out, Robinson jumped out of a stolen Nissan Altima, chased him down, and shot him.⁴

An off-duty Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officer saw the silver Nissan speed away and gave chase. The car crashed near Townsend Boulevard. Barner and co-defendant Leroy “ATK Scotty” Whitaker Jr. ran, broke into a nearby home, and held a woman hostage before Abdul Robinson Sr. picked them up. DNA later tied both men to the home invasion. After the shooting, Robinson posted a clip of a Lil Buck music video to Instagram with the caption “Byeeee byeeee.”²

The Trial

Robinson and Whitaker were tried simultaneously before separate juries in Duval County. Jury selection began July 21, 2025, and opening statements followed on July 23.⁵ The trial ran six days.

The state’s case leaned on two cooperating witnesses who had cut plea deals. Barner walked jurors through the planning and the ambush. Abdul Robinson Sr. took the stand against his own son and identified him as the shooter in dashcam footage from the police pursuit.⁴ Investigators also placed Robinson’s fingerprint on a gun recovered from the stolen Nissan, though a forensic examiner testified she could not say when it was left.

Rap Lyrics as Evidence

Prosecutors played the song “Ksoo Homicide,” credited to Robinson’s associate Yungeen Ace, which a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office sergeant described as a track where Ace “raps about wanting Ksoo to kill people.”⁶ They also showed jurors the “bye bye” Instagram post, arguing it was consciousness of guilt.

Robinson’s defense attorney, Christopher Decoste, argued prosecutors were “misinterpreting music and turning performers into criminals.” He noted McCormick himself had rapped about past violence without being treated as a suspect and told jurors, “You can’t say, so it’s OK for Charles McCormick, but it’s not OK for my client.”⁴ The defense also flagged an identification problem: witnesses put the shooter between 5-foot-5 and 5-foot-9, while Robinson is over six feet tall.

Verdict and Life Sentence

On July 31, 2025, after about three and a half hours of deliberation, the jury found Robinson and Whitaker guilty of first-degree murder.⁷ Whitaker was also convicted of burglary with assault or battery for the home invasion after the shooting. On October 1, 2025, Judge Tatiana Salvador sentenced both men to mandatory life in prison without parole; Whitaker received a concurrent life sentence on the burglary count.⁸ The judge denied motions for new trials in September 2025.³ Both men have said they plan to appeal.

The Lil Bibby Case and 2026 Guilty Plea

The second Ksoo murder case was older than the McCormick case but resolved later. On February 25, 2019, roughly six weeks after Willie Addison’s killing, 16-year-old Adrian Gainer Jr. was shot to death at the Hilltop Village apartments on West 45th Street.⁹ According to the arrest warrant, Robinson and Leroy Whitaker got out of a gray Nissan Altima carrying semi-automatic rifles and opened fire on Gainer and another man at a gazebo. Investigators recovered 45 shell casings. The warrant said Robinson “ran up to Bibby and shot him at close range in the back of the head or neck” as the teenager tried to shield himself. Robinson allegedly boasted about the killing on social media afterward.

Robinson was not charged in Gainer’s death until March 2021, by which point he was already in jail on the McCormick case.¹⁰¹¹¹²

Co-Defendants in the McCormick Case

Several members of Robinson’s family and inner circle resolved their cases through pleas:

Dominique “Butta” Barner, the getaway driver, pleaded guilty and was sentenced on November 21, 2025, to 25 years in prison followed by three years of probation. The judge cited his “complete and full cooperation” as a mitigating factor and ordered that he be housed out of state for his safety.¹³
Abdul Robinson Sr., Hakeem’s father, pleaded guilty to helping Whitaker and Barner escape after the shooting and testified against his son and nephew at trial. He was sentenced the same day to time served, 1,898 days, plus two years of community control with electronic monitoring and three years of probation.¹³
Abdul Robinson Jr., Hakeem’s brother, was initially charged with first-degree murder, pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact, and was sentenced to 12 years.¹⁴

Where Ksoo Is Now

As of April 2026, Robinson is incarcerated at Okaloosa Correctional Institution in northwest Florida, transferred there after an intake period at the Reception and Medical Center in Lake Butler. He is listed as not eligible for regular visits.¹⁵ Both he and Whitaker have said they intend to appeal their first-degree murder convictions in the McCormick case.¹¹

1
News4Jax. Jacksonville Man Killed in Mass Shooting Was Aspiring Rapper
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Action News Jax. What to Know About Accused Jacksonville Gang Members at Center of Deadly Drill Rap Beef
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News4Jax. Jacksonville Rapper Ksoo, Cousin Request New Trials After Murder Convictions
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News4Jax. Testimony Continues in Murder Trial After Father Identifies Son as Shooter
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Action News Jax. Jacksonville Gang Members at Center of Deadly Drill Rap Beef Go to Trial
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XXL Magazine. Yungeen Ace Song Used in Ksoo Murder Trial
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Office of the State Attorney, Fourth Judicial Circuit. Hakeem Robinson, Leroy Whitaker Found Guilty of Murder
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WOKV. Ksoo, ATK Scotty Sentenced to Life in Prison for Rap Feud Murder
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Jacksonville.com. Final Gang Suspect in Jacksonville Rapper’s Death Arrested
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Action News Jax. New Details Emerge About Crime Family Centered Around Drugs for Decades
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News4Jax. Hakeem Ksoo Robinson Pleads Guilty in Murder of Lil Bibby
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XXL Magazine. Ksoo Guilty of Second Murder, Gets 10 Years in Prison
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News4Jax. Father of Jacksonville Rapper Ksoo Sentenced in Connection With Deadly Shooting
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News4Jax. Brother of Jacksonville Rapper Sentenced to 12 Years After Pleading Guilty to Accessory Charges
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News4Jax. Jacksonville Rapper Sentenced to Life Transferred to Okaloosa Correctional Institution