A murder suspect has been charged after being extradited from the US over the fatal stabbing of a 21-year-old music producer in a drill rap feud.
Jahtel Williamson, 25, was extradited from Washington DC on Saturday and handed over to police following his arrival at Heathrow Airport.
He has been charged with the murder of Dean Pascale-Modeste, which four other men have already been jailed for.
Corey Donaldson and Alex Scott, both 18, were jailed for life for stabbing Mr Pascale-Modeste 14 times on February 24, 2017, as the music producer was on his way to a recording session in Mottingham, south-east London.
Jahtel Williamson, 25, has been charged with the murder of Dean Pascale-Modeste (pictured), which four other men have already been jailed for
Devone Pusey, 20, and Kai Stewart, 18, were also found guilty of the murder the following year. Stewart, who initially fled the country to Jamaica, was jailed for a minimum of 17 years while Pusey was jailed for a minimum of 20.
Mr Pascale-Modeste was mobbed by a group of teenagers on mopeds, then chased by a second group through the Chinbrook estate in Grove Park before being repeatedly stabbed.
He was hunted down by members of the B Side gang from Lewisham because he was friends with their rivals the Splash gang, who were locked in a ‘poisonous’ YouTube rap feud, exchanging barbs in their online videos on TimWestwoodTV.
And Westwood, a 63-year-old son of a Cambridge bishop, was mentioned in the Old Bailey murder trial by Judge Nicholas Cooke QC who said drill music was putting innocent people in ‘harm’s way’.
Corey Donaldson (left) and Alex Scott (right), both 18, were jailed for life for stabbing Mr Pascale-Modeste 14 times on February 24, 2017, as the music producer was on his way to a recording session in Mottingham, south-east London
A Met Police database that tracked more than 600 suspected gangsters across 1,100 YouTube clips, named 32 videos on his channel that potentially incite violence.
The DJ, who hosted the BBC Radio 1 Rap Show for 20 years until 2013, earns money from advertising on the channel.
It has amassed 388million views by broadcasting clips including hundreds of rap videos from mainstream stars and suspected gang members.
In 2018, the family of a murdered teenager accused Mr Westwood of glamorising knife crime after he recorded a video with a gang celebrating the killing.
Abdullahi Tarabi, 19, was stabbed after being chased through a west London estate in daylight on April 11, 2017.
Devone Pusey (left), 20, and Kai Stewart (right), 18, were also found guilty of the murder the following year. Stewart, who initially fled the country to Jamaica, was jailed for a minimum of 17 years while Pusey was jailed for a minimum of 20
Screenshot of B Side gang members in a freestyle rap video for Tim Westwood’s YouTube channel
Two 17-year-old defendants were cleared following an Old Bailey trial in October 2017.
Around the same time, Mr Westwood posted a music video he had recorded with a rap gang when they boasted that the victim ‘got splashed and I don’t feel sorry for his mum’.
The victim’s mother, Fawziya Ahmed, said: ‘This is hurtful. I can’t believe someone would say that.’
Mr Westwood’s spokesman has previously said: ‘TimWestwoodTV gives up-and-coming artists a platform to be heard by a wider audience. The YouTube channel provides a non-profit outlet for young artists to express their talent and help provide them with an opportunity to get into the music industry.’
Williamson appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday and was remanded in custody to appear at the Old Bailey on May 28.