Authorities prosecuting the murder case against Eric Holder, the man charged with shooting rapper Nipsey Hussle to death in front of his store in South Los Angeles in March, are preparing to paint a portrait of a man prone to violence.
According to witness statements presented to prosecutors, an hour before Holder is alleged to have killed Hussle (real name: Ermias Asghedom), Holder pistol-whipped a man he argued with over bad weed, TMZ reports.
Two women reported to the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office that a male neighbor of theirs told them that Holder showed up to his door to complain about a $10 bag of weed he had purchased from him.
As TMZ explains:
They went into the hallway to talk, and according to the statements ... Holder was “breathing very heavily and appeared very excited and very agitated.” When Holder got more hostile, the neighbor tried to return to his apartment but was allegedly pistol-whipped in the back of the head.
The neighbor survived the alleged beating, but told the women that Holder was “shaking and looked very nervous” before taking off.
A few days later, the women told the L.A. DA, their neighbor learned that Holder was a suspect in Hussle’s death, but by then he was too scared to go to police—as he had sold weed to Holder, TMZ reports.
An hour after the encounter with their neighbor on the afternoon of March 31, Holder is accused of gunning down Hussle in front of his Marathon Clothing store.
Holder, who faces murder charges and is being held without bond, is looking for a new attorney. Chris Darden, the prosecutor in the infamous O.J. Simpson murder trial, initially took on Holder’s case, but stepped aside earlier this month, citing death threats.