FORT WORTH -- Edward "Tre" Earl Washington III was a member of the Arlington street gang called the Lynch Mob when he made a $40 Super Bowl bet with up-and-coming rapper Jarami Thomas on Facebook, prosecutors told a Tarrant County jury on Tuesday.
Thomas' girlfriend testified that because the bet was made on Facebook, Thomas, 20, did not consider it real and refused to pay.But Washington was serious.On March 14, 2011, Thomas agreed to a meeting to settle the dispute, prosecutor Tamla Ray said in her opening statement.In an Arlington convenience store parking lot, Thomas and his friends, including the girlfriend, in one vehicle were blocked by a vehicle that contained members of the Lynch Mob.Thomas was pulled out and shot by Lynch Mob member Clevin Brown, who was convicted in April of murder and organized criminal activity and sentenced to 50 years in prison.Now Washington, 18, is on trial on the same charges.Thomas' girlfriend, Jasmine Boston, testified that after Thomas said he wouldn't pay the bet, Washington started peppering Thomas' cellphone with harassing calls and threatening text messages."He was disturbed by the texts," Boston said. The texts were violent, and Washington wanted to fight, Boston said. Thomas' attitude was that the bet "wasn't that serious," and he didn't want to fight, Boston said.Still, he agreed to the meeting, and after a performance his group drove to a convenience store in the 3200 block of West Green Oaks Boulevard."I heard a gunshot go off, and I could see Jarami fall, and I looked back, and [Brown] was still pointing the gun at Jarami," Boston said.Boston said they took Thomas to USMD Hospital in Arlington where she waited while the friends went inside to get help."I was in the back seat trying to hold his head up," she said.Washington's attorney Robin McCarty said during opening arguments that the prosecution was telling a story with missing parts.Testimony is scheduled to continue at 9 a.m. today in state District Judge Ruben Gonzalez's court.Mitch Mitchell, 817-390-7752Twitter: @mitchmitchel3Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
