Rapper MoneySign Suede fatally stabbed in California prison shower

News

By Nika Shakhnazarova

April 27, 2023 | 4:23

A promising musician who was five months into his prison sentence was killed in a California jail on Tuesday, officials said.

Rapper MoneySign Suede, best known for his hit song “Back to the Bag,” was fatally stabbed in the neck while showering at Soledad Correctional Training Center, south of San Jose.

The 22-year-old’s injuries were “consistent with homicide”, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said.

He was reported missing after a count was made on Tuesday evening just before 10 p.m.

Moments later he was found on the floor of a shower with stab wounds as officials fought to save his life at the prison’s on-site medical facility.

Despite their best efforts, the rapper, whose real name is Jaime Brugada Valdez, died in prison.

His death is being investigated as a homicide, the CDCR said.

“They said it was a stab in the neck,” Valdez’s attorney, Nicholas Rosenberg, told the Los Angeles Times, confirming the attack happened in the facility’s shower.

Since his death, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has announced that the prison is restricting the movements of other inmates.

The prison, which opened in 1947, houses more than 4,000 minimum and medium security inmates.

Valdez was serving his 32-month sentence for two gun-related convictions at the time of his death.

He was sentenced in December 2022 on two counts of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm in Riverside County, officials say.

Rosenberg said he has since spoken to the rapper’s family, who were notified of his death and the details surrounding it by the corrections department.

“There is an investigation, but at this stage the motive remains unknown,” Rosenberg added. “Suede was a very popular guy, very mild-mannered. Everyone loved him.”

The rapper’s family took to his Instagram account, which has 230,000 followers, writing, “We appreciate the condolences, our family didn’t start a GoFundMe, please don’t fall for the scams, thank you.”

MoneySign Suede was an up-and-coming rapper from Huntington Park, a town near Los Angeles.

The musician, known for the hits “Whole Time” and “Too Late”, signed to Atlantic Records in 2021.

He released his last album in September 2022, titled “Parkside Baby”.

Valdez racked up over 7 million views on YouTube and had over 87,000 subscribers at the time of his death.

With post wires