LAPD/Facebook Eric Holder
Eric Holder, the 29-year-old Los Angeles-based aspiring rapper on the run in the murder of beloved rapper and entrepreneur Nipsey Hussle, has a previous firearms-related criminal history.
Holder also has gang ties, police confirmed. The biography of Holder that is emerging thus far paints a picture of a man caught up in a lifestyle of the sort that even the top officials in Los Angeles say Hussle was trying to change.
The suspect is at large, and police are seeking the public’s help in finding him. “I ask him (Holder) to surrender,” implored the police chief, Michel Moore, during an April 2 news conference. “…Stop this from continuing.”
Eric Holder
“This has been a tough few days for Los Angeles,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “We learned that another young life was cut short by a gun in our city…Nipsey Hussle…was someone who was a gifted and brilliant artist. An entrepreneur who found global success. He was working closely with this city. He was a tireless advocate for the young people of this city and this world. His impact on our city was deep.”
People on social media identified the suspect earlier April 1 as a man who goes by several street names, including one used on rap beats: “Shitty Cuz,” and “Fly Mac.” The first street name sparked rounds of jokes on Twitter, as did the suspect’s name, which, of course, is the same as the former U.S. Attorney General. Some sites gave his nickname as “Little Shitty.”
But, of course, the situation was tragically serious. Holder was identified through video evidence and statements from the community, the chief said. “The community is helping us solve this case.” As for motive? “We believe this to be a dispute between Mr. Hussle and Mr. Holder… it appears to be a personal matter between the two of them. I will leave it at that,” said Moore.
Here’s what you need to know:
Eric Ronald Holder Has a Prior Weapons Case & Domestic Charges That Were Dismissed
Eric Holder is wanted for Homicide in the shooting of Nipsey Hussle. He was last seen in a 2016 white 4 door Chevy Cruze CA license plate 7RJD742. Anyone with information related to his whereabouts or this deadly shooting is urged to contact South Bureau Homicide at 323-786-5100
Los Angeles court records show that Eric Holder has a criminal history.
He was accused of carrying a loaded firearm and carrying a concealed weapon in the same case. The first charge resulted in a guilty plea and the second was dismissed. They date to 2012. He received three years’ probation and 180 days in the Los Angeles County Jail. In 2015, there was a probation revocation hearing in the case.
Eric Holder court records
In 2009, charges were dismissed. The statutes listed are for domestic violence and battery. He also faced traffic offenses, such as driving without a license, in 2011. They’re listed as pending. His full name is listed in court records as Eric Ronald Holder.
TMZ is reporting that the gunman had a conversation with Hussle before the shooting in which Hussle accused him of “snitching.” Authorities have not confirmed that account. They would not comment on the nature of the personal dispute they described between Hussle and Holder.
Police Say Eric Holder Was in a Street Gang in Los Angeles
“Fly Mac”
Police have investigated the case “relentlessly” to identify Holder as the suspect, said the chief.
Some sources have alleged that Holder is a member of the Crips street gang. Hussle has long been associated with the Rollin 60s Neighborhood Crips, one of Los Angeles’ largest street gangs.
Facebook posts on a page under Holder’s rap name Fly Mac shows him with a Crips tattoo. “Bro stay fly crippin,” a woman wrote under one photo from 2016. On Instagram, Eric Holder’s page is called “ima_god_in_da_streetz.” He labeled himself “Boss King,” and wrote, “Cool young king….hood playa patna.” He also wrote: “I’m so hood..”
He posted several videos to his page. One of his posts read “Slauson Avenue.” Nipsey died at Slauson and Crenshaw, where he had a clothing store.
Fly Mac
“We believe Mr. Holder is a member of a street gang,” the police chief confirmed, but he added that authorities did not believe the shooting was the result of gang rivalries. He would not name the gang.
Just hours before he was killed, Nipsey Hussle tweeted, “Having strong enemies is a blessing.”
Hussle, whose real name is Ermias Asghedom, was gunned down a day before he was set to meet with LAPD and city officials to talk about gang violence. Hussle was shot in the head and torso. He had been working to help community leaders reduce violence in the neighborhood in which he grew up.
Eric Holder Was Trying to Make it as a Gangster Rapper
Eric Holder AKA Shitty Cuz
Eric Holder was trying to convert a troubled life (at least as evidenced by his criminal history) into street cred in the music world. In 2018, a blog called him “up and coming West-Coast underground Hip Hop artist Fly Mac.” A now-deleted YouTube video of his once read, “First single of the hot up and coming rapper Fly Mac, westcoast based rapper has been at it for a couple years now and is ready for his big break.” However, he doesn’t appear to have had much of a following, on social media or otherwise.
Although Nipsey Hussle had made it big in the rap world, recording with some of the music industry’s biggest names, Shitty Cuz was trying to make his way in the same field, per his Soundcloud account, which you can access here.
“for bookings and to submit beats email…FLY_MAC60 ….plenty n*ggas hate cuz I’m da great…im a westcoast artist…..” the page says. A Facebook page in the name “Fly Mac” contains a few photos of Eric Holder and was created two days before the murder. The page was coded “musician/band.” Another Facebook page with the same photos, one of which was posted in 2018, says the suspect went to “Crenshaw High School.”
He wrote in 2016 on Facebook: “I aint been doin sh*t out here in long beach…stayin out da way n keepin 2 myself…and talkin to no 1.”
“We are currently working with the District Attorney’s office…to obtain a warrant for his (Holder’s) arrest. But we believe with probable cause and a degree of certainty on Sunday…“ the police chief, Michel Moore, said in a press conference. “Nipsey with two other males were standing in front of his store. Mr. Holder walked up on multiple occasions and engaged in a conversation with Nipsey and the others that were there. He left and then came back and subsequently came back armed with a handgun and purposely and repeatedly fired.”
Holder entered a passenger side of a Chevy Cruze, said the chief. It was located in an alley adjacent to the mini mall. The woman who was driving is still unidentified, he said. “Armed with a handgun…this expression of violence represents that this is a man who is a substantial risk to public safety,” said the chief. He indicated that he was confident that Holder was watching the televised press conference.
LAPD wrote late in the evening of April 1: “Eric Holder is wanted for Homicide in the shooting of Nipsey Hussle. He was last seen in a 2016 white 4 door Chevy Cruze CA license plate 7RJD742. Anyone with information related to his whereabouts or this deadly shooting is urged to contact South Bureau Homicide at 323-786-5100.” The mayor also gave out Holder’s name at a press conference on April 2.
Police wrote that detectives from LAPD’s South Bureau Homicide Division are seeking the public’s help in locating the suspect “involved in a multiple victim shooting which resulted in a homicide.” Police said that the shooting unfolded when, around 3:20 p.m. on March 31, 2019, three male adults were standing in front of a business in a strip mall in the 3400 block of West Slauson Blvd. The suspect walked up to the men and fired numerous shots at them, wrote police. “The victims were struck and fell to the ground.”
The suspect “ran southbound through an adjacent alley to a waiting vehicle,” said police. “The suspect entered the passenger side of the vehicle and fled the area….the vehicle was driven by an unidentified female,” wrote the LAPD.
Two victims were taken to the hospital with one refusing medical treatment at the scene. Nipsey Hussle died as a result of his gunshot wounds, confirmed police.
TMZ has obtained a copy of a surveillance video that captures the Nipsey Hussle shooting, including the suspect from afar. The video is grainy, and, as a result, it is not particularly graphic. However, be forewarned that it’s still disturbing because of the moment it captures.
You can watch the video here:
The video does show that Nipsey Hussle and the suspect were in a group of people before the shooting broke out and a man falls on the ground in front of a white car.