On a summer morning in 2020, the life of 21-year-old Albert Smith, a male and an up-and-coming rap artist from Tennessee, was cut short in Southeast Washington, D.C. Smith, also known as CEO Bezzal, had traveled to the city with a group of friends. The night before his death, Smith and his friends were in the Congress Park neighborhood, where they socialized and gambled, with tens of thousands of dollars reportedly involved.
The gathering took a violent turn in the early hours of June
14. At approximately 7:19 a.m., as Smith and his friends decided to leave, they were followed and attacked in the 1300 block of Congress Street, Southeast. Gunshots rang out, and when police arrived, they found Smith and another man suffering from gunshot wounds. Both were transported to a local hospital, where Albert Smith succumbed to his injuries. The second man was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. It was later reported that two other members of Smith's group were pistol-whipped and robbed of a significant amount of cash.
The investigation into the shooting led to the eventual arrest of five men. In March 2022, authorities apprehended 32-year-old John Wilkins of Temple Hills, Maryland, and 34-year-old Marcel Gavin of Northeast, D.C. Both were charged with first-degree murder while armed. Further investigation led to a 20-count indictment against Wilkins and Gavin, as well as Kharee Jackson, 30, Earl Robinson, 31, and Darryl Little, 29, all from Washington D.C. The charges against the group included conspiracy, murder, assault, and robbery. All five defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges. The case is expected to go to trial, with a tentative date set for August of 2026.
