Who was Timothy Starks? Miami rapper shot and killed MINUTES after walking out of jail
Timothy Starks had just walked out of jail on Wednesday, March 16 and got into a friend's car. Minutes later, he was dead, after being gunned down by a hail of bullets while in traffic. It had not even been a full 10 minutes since Starks was released before he was dead. The tragic incident occurred in Miami and is now the subject of a police investigation.
A rapper by profession, Starks isn't the only one to be gunned down this year. On January 14, Wavy Navy Pooh was similarly shot in Miami, while in a car. On February 3, TDott Woo, a New York native was shot outside his own home in Brooklyn, hours after signing a record deal. Then days later, on February 25, the rapper Snootie Wild was gunned down in Houston, by a single shot to the neck.
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Most of these killings are yet to be resolved, and rappers continue to be targeted by gunmen. So far, no one knows why exactly that is, and an inability to nip the issue in the bud is seeing more and more rappers killed. Tragically, Starks is just the latest in a very long line.
Who was Timothy Starks?
Professionally known as Baby Cino, Starks was just 20-years-old and finding his feet in the music industry. He had three songs to his name on YouTube, with the most recent one named 'Big Haiti Shottas' being released in January 2022. Dedicated to Gary Laguerre, an 18-year-old shot in 2020, the song speaks about gun violence at an apartment building. Beyond his promising YouTube channel, Starks didn't appear to have much of a social media presence.
Miami Herald reported that Starks was associated with a Little Haiti area gang known as Boss Life. At the moment it is unclear if that association played a role in his death, but is very likely. He was arrested on March 15 by Miami-Dade Police’s Robbery Intervention Detail unit in Opa-Locka. The arrest report says he was first pulled over for having an obstructed tag, but police soon found him concealing "an object consistent with the shape of a firearm."
He was caught with a fully loaded Glock 32, and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. At 2:10 pm the next day, he was released and picked up by Dante’ Collins Banks. Starks was reportedly still wearing the wristband given to inmates when a hail of gunfire rained down upon him and Banks. Reportedly, around 40 bullets were fired at the Nissan Banks was driving.
Banks was reportedly severely wounded, with the gunfire resulting in the car crashing into a concrete barrier wall along the Palmetto Expressway. His current situation is not known, but we can confirm that Starks died in the shootout. It is not known if the duo were followed from the jail, and how the attackers knew Starks was being released. Details on the attackers are yet to be released by police, who only confirmed they fled the area in a "dark-colored" vehicle.