Rapper Lil Tjay is starting to show “significant” progress after he was shot last week in the Edgewater area of New Jersey and underwent emergency surgery, according to TMZ.
The 21-year-old rapper is now awake, alert and speaking on his own. Recently, doctors removed his breathing tube and he now sounds similar to how he sounded before he was shot.
A day after the news came out that the “Run It Up” rapper was shot, his alleged shooter was arrested by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit. The suspect is 27-year-old Mohamed Konate and local police say the shooting occurred after Konate tried to allegedly rob the rapper. He is now facing charges of attempted murder and armed robbery, according to TMZ.
Two other men who were associated with Tjay, Jeffrey Valdez and Antoine Boyd, were also arrested and charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon. Boyd was also shot during the incident.
More from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit:
The arrests are the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Jason Love and the Edgewater Police Department under the direction of Chief Donald Martin.
Just after midnight, on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, the Edgewater Police Department received multiple 911 calls reporting shots fired in the area of 14 The Promenade in Edgewater, NJ. Upon their arrival to the area, officers found 21-year-old Tione “Lil TJay” Merritt with multiple gunshot wounds and Antoine Boyd with a single gunshot wound. An investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Edgewater Police Department revealed that MOHAMED KONATE had attempted to commit armed robbery against Tione Merritt, Jeffrey Valdez, and Antoine Boyd when the shooting occurred. JEFFREY VALDEZ and ANTOINE BOYD, who were with Tione Merritt, were found to each be in possession of an unlawful weapon.