Houston police revealed on Friday that Patrick Xavier Clark, 33, has been charged with murder in the Nov. 1 killing of Kirshnik Khari Bell, who was otherwise known as one-third of the Atlanta hip-hop group.
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Clark was taken into custody Thursday evening on the city's east side without incident.
Clark is the second person charged in connection with the shooting that took place at the 810 Billiard and Bowling alley at 1210 San Jacinto in downtown Houston.
Just hours before Clark's arrest, 22-year-old Cameron Joshua was taken into custody and charged with two counts of felon in possession of a weapon. Police emphasized that Joshua is not alleged to have been directly involved in Takeoff's death.
Clark was slated to appear in probable cause court on Friday night. Prosecutors are asking for a $1 million bond based on, according to documentation, his application for an expedited passport and a documented travel itinerary for a flight to Mexico.
The state also said he was able to get the passport, and when he was arrested, officers found a large amount of cash on him.
A monthlong challenge
Houston city leadership was front and center when Clark's arrest was announced Friday, given the international media coverage the rapper's death drew.
Police Chief Troy Finner and Mayor Sylvester Turner spoke on the cultural impact of recent murders, especially those involving people of color.
ORIGINAL REPORT: HPD chief wants change in hip-hop community to start in Houston after Takeoff's death
The most telling part of Friday's media briefing, though, was the perceived challenge investigators faced to solve the murder of a celebrity who, police said, was essentially an innocent bystander.
In the weeks following the shooting, word came out about the circumstances that led to the shots being fired. Police on Friday acknowledged that Takeoff died when several other people got into it over a high-stakes dice game at a private party inside 810 Billiard and Bowling.
"I can tell you that Takeoff was not involved in playing the dice game. He was not involved in the argument that happened outside. He was not armed," HPD Homicide Division Sgt. Michael Burrow told reporters.
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All told, police estimate more than 30 people were present when Takeoff was shot. The real challenge, they said, was when none of those people stayed behind to provide anything that could have helped investigators.
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"Literally every single one of those people left the scene without giving a statement to police," Burrow said, adding that they had to track down people later that night and in the days after.
Still, police want to speak with witnesses.
"It's important that those people come forward, and we're still looking to talk to a lot of those people," Burrow said.
So, how did the police identify Clark?
According to Burrow, they had to rely on a "large volume" of video surveillance evidence, as well as cell phone videos and audio that they examined later on.
"We had to sift through all of that and use physical evidence, and use shooting reconstruction, and confirm a lot of our ballistic evidence. What weapons were involved?" Burrow said. "And through that, we were able to deduce that Patrick Clark is the legal shooter in the case. That's why he's being charged with murder."
Clark's past
The confrontation that left Takeoff dead may not be the first that resulted in Clark being investigated.
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An Eyewitness News search of criminal records uncovered Clark's connection to a February 2018 shooting at a nightclub along North Shepherd Drive. A victim in his 50s died when a customer opened fire inside the business, prompting security guards to fire back, police said.
Clark emerged as a suspect in the case, but a Harris County grand jury found there wasn't enough evidence to indict him.
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