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The only adult defendant who was charged with Pop Smoke's murder has accepted a plea deal ahead of his scheduled trial.
According to a report Rolling Stone published on Wednesday, February 5, Corey Walker pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and home invasion robbery with gun and gang enhancements. The 24-year-old was accused of plotting the robbery that led to the "Dior" rapper's death in 2020. He also pleaded guilty to robbing a woman who was inside the home at the time. Walker will be sentenced to 29 years in prison at a hearing later this month. He will serve two-year sentences for both manslaughter and robbery convictions that will run concurrently.
Prosecutors alleged Walker and his three juvenile co-defendants made plans to rob Pop Smoke before they went to his rented Airbnb on the morning of February 19, 2020. They plotted to steal cash, a gold chain, and a diamond-studded watch that the New York native revealed in a social post the day before. They pinpointed Pop's location after he posted a photo of a gift bag with the Airbnb's address on it.
Walker was initially charged with one count of murder, two counts of robbery and one count of burglary. He could've received the maximum sentence of life in prison without parole if a jury found him guilty. As part of the deal, prosecutors dropped the original murder charge and canceled his scheduled trial that was supposed to begin this week in Los Angeles. The new voluntary manslaughter charge was added on Wednesday.
Corey Walker is expected to formally enter his guilty plea on February 21, 2025. His plea means prosecutors are on track to close the case nearly five years after Pop Smoke was murdered.