Rapper MoneySign Suede, 22 has been found dead after he was stabbed in a shower at a California jail, according to reports. The rising Los Angeles rapper, who was born Jaime Brugada Valdez, was found dead on Tuesday at the Correctional Training Facility in Soledad, California, where he was serving a sentence, TMZ reported.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation released a statement saying that Correctional Training Facility officials are investigating the death as a homicide. According to reports MoneySign died at a prison medical facility despite life-saving efforts. Cops are investigating other inmates but are yet to identify a suspect in the rapper's death.
Killed Inside Prison
it was apparently established that the rapper, whose real name Jaime Brugada Valdez, was missing after a headcount was conducted on Tuesday night around 9:55 pm. Cops started a search and MoneySign Suede was finally found in another part of the housing unit, unresponsive, with "injuries consistent with a homicide."
The rapper was rushed to a nearby hospital by emergency personnel, but despite their efforts to save his life, he was pronounced dead at 10.00 pm that night.
The prison has reportedly restricted inmates' freedom of movement after his death, according to a statement from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The rapper's death is currently being investigated by the Monterey County District Attorney's Office, while the coroner for the county is attempting to ascertain the cause of death.
Nicholas Rosenberg, MoneySign Suede's lawyer, told the Los Angeles Times that he was informed that his client had been stabbed in the neck in the shower. The rapper was found in a section of the prison holding general population prisoners, according to a prisoner who spoke anonymously to the publication.
He claimed that it was unusual because a rapper would often be kept in the sensitive-needs yard, which is for inmates with particular safety concerns or with public profiles.
It's unclear if the rapper's profile was high enough to demand that kind of security, as he was still in the early phases of his career.
MoneySign Suede's family released a statement on his Instagram: "We appreciate the condolences, our family has not set a gofundme, don't fall for any scams, thank you!"
Killer Still Unidentified
According to his lawyer, MoneySign Suede had been serving a 32-month sentence in Riverside County for gun-related offenses for possession/owning a gun by a felon or addict as a second striker. In addition, he was serving a one-year, four-month term for possessing a firearm after being found guilty of a serious offense.
Both sentences were being served by Brugada simultaneously.
He had already entered a plea of not guilty to the charge, and he was now facing a two-year prison term that would probably run concurrently with his earlier sentence.
MoneySign Suede had turned himself up in December of last year.
MoneySign Suede's career got a boost after he signed with Atlantic Records in 2021. In September 2022, the label released Parkside Baby, his most recent album.
The Huntington Park rapper was dubbed the Mexican Kodak Black by his fans following the success of his debut self-titled album in March 2022.
The same year, MoneySign Suede released two mixtapes, one of which was Parkside Baby and contained the popular songs 10 Deep, Jank, and Hell n Back.
The troubled musician, however, spent years in and out of prison before he passed away.
The 22-year-old posted a YouTube video of his final 24 hours before he was due to report to prison in early January.
It remains unclear why he was in prison.
Tributes to the Los Angeles songwriter swiftly spread on social media following his death.
"RIP MONEYSIGN SUEDE ONE OF THE ONLY ONES FROM SOUTHEAST LA," tweeted one fan.
"I'm tired of seeing my favorite rappers die. RIP Moneysign Suede, we believed in you," wrote another fan.
"Damn, RIParadise to MoneySignSuede .. one of the most promising young talented artists from LA in recent years," wrote yet another fan.
A fourth fan tweeted: "RIP MoneySign Suede, much more than L.A.'s own Mexican-American Kodak, but who also channeled that same pain, indomitability & sense of struggle."
Moneysign Suede was performing at a warehouse party in Boyle Heights last June when a shooting occurred. Three people were killed in the incident, and four more were hurt.
