Four men get life without parole for Julio Foolio ambush killing

A Hillsborough County judge sentenced four men to life in prison without parole on June 22, 2026, for the ambush killing of Jacksonville rapper Charles Jones, known as Julio Foolio. The punishment became official after a Hillsborough County jury recommended life terms without parole and declined to recommend the death penalty, leaving the mandatory sentence in place under Florida law.

The defendants, Rashad Murphy, Davion Murphy, Sean Gathright and Isaiah Chance, were convicted of first-degree murder in May 2026. Prosecutors tied the killing to a planned ambush stemming from a Jacksonville gang feud that spilled into Tampa, and trial evidence included text messages showing the men trying to locate Jones in the city.

Jones was 26 when he was shot and killed on June 23, 2024, during a birthday trip to Tampa. Rival gang members tracked him to a hotel parking lot near the University of South Florida, where gunfire erupted and Jones tried to drive away before dying at the scene. Surveillance video captured the chaotic aftermath, and three other people were wounded in the shooting.

Judge Michelle Sisco condemned the violence tied to turf warfare and drill-rap feuds, while two of the defendants used their remarks to speak to younger people about avoiding the same path and making better choices.

A fifth defendant, Alicia Andrews, had already been sentenced to 15 years in prison after a manslaughter conviction in May 2026. Prosecutors said Andrews helped her then-boyfriend and three other men track and stalk Jones as he moved between Tampa nightclubs, making her case part of the same broader investigation that led to the four life sentences.