Houston Police Arrest Patrick Xavier Clark for the Murder of Takeoff

Houston Police arrest Patrick Xavier Clark for the murder of Takeoff.

Police have arrested a 33-year-old man on a murder charge in the fatal shooting of rapper Takeoff, who they said was a “innocent bystander” to gunfire last month outside a bowling alley in Houston, according to the Associated Press.

Patrick Xavier Clark was taken into custody peacefully Thursday night, December 01, 2022, exactly one month after the murder of Takeoff, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner reported on Friday, December 02, 2022.

Clark is the second person arrested in connection with the shooting that wounded two other people.

Born Kirsnick Khari Ball, Takeoff was the youngest member of Migos, the Grammy-nominated rap trio from suburban Atlanta that also featured his uncle Quavo and his cousin Offset.

The 28-year-old musician was one of three people police said were shot outside the downtown bowling alley around 2:30 a.m. on November 1, 2022, when a dispute erupted as about 40 people were leaving a private party at the alley.

Police have said another man and a woman suffered non-life-threatening gunshot injuries during the shooting, in which at least two people opened fired.

Houston Police Sargent Michael Burrow said during a Friday news conference that the shooting followed a dispute over a game of dice, but that Takeoff was not involved and was “an innocent bystander”, according to the Associated Press.

On Wednesday November 30, 2022, Houston police announced the arrest of Cameron Joshua in connection to the shooting. The 22-year-old was charged with illegally having a gun at the time Takeoff was shot, but Burrow said investigators believe it was Clark’s gunfire that killed the rapper.

Fans and other performers, including Drake and Justin Bieber, celebrated Takeoff’s musical legacy in a memorial service last month in Atlanta.