The Texas man charged with murder in the death of Migos rapper Takeoff appeared back in a Houston courtroom on Tuesday morning as his attorneys continue to fight for lower bond.
33-year-old Patrick Clark is charged with murder for the deadly shooting of Kirsnick Khari Ball, known professionally as Takeoff.
Clark is being held on a $1 million bond, but he could be out of custody within 24 to 48 hours if his attorneys complete a few more requests coming from Judge Josh Hill.
His bond was originally set at $2 million, but a judge granted a request to reduce the amount during his last court appearance. However, Clark’s defense attorney still says the amount is too high, and thinks something around $300,000 is more appropriate.
If Hill lowers Clark’s bond to that amount, he is expected to be released.
Clark’s attorney said the suspect’s family is willing to put up their Houston-area home as collateral in order to bond him out of jail. In addition, the whole family will co-sign a bond issued by a bondsman if lowered, which Mark Metze, a bail bondsman, said the family has already taken care of.
Meanwhile, prosecutors are concerned that Clark isn’t being up front about all his financial assets. They think he has much more money than he claims.
The judge asked Clark to turn in his passport card and also would like to assign him GPS monitoring through a specific bond company that would immediately notify if bond conditions are violated.
Hill said he believes Clark may be a flight risk and requested a deep dive into the suspect’s personal finances. He wants to understand why Clark cannot post bond, yet was recorded on a jail phone call saying the $2 million was doable.
Clark’s defense team said they will submit his passport card on Tuesday — and the judge requested another hearing regarding the bond for Wednesday morning.
Takeoff was shot to death in the early morning hours of Nov. 1 outside a bowling alley in downtown Houston. Police said he was in a crowd of people and an innocent bystander near an argument over a dice game.
Detectives on the case allege Clark had a gun in one hand and a wine bottle in another when he was caught on camera firing his weapon. Those bullets allegedly struck Takeoff.
Fingerprints on that wine bottle are what detectives say helped identified Clark to authorities.
They went on to say that Clark searched for information about the case online and also searched his name and age in relation to the case. His attorney claims he did not know he was the prime suspect in the rapper’s death.
The state says Clark planned to flee to Mexico after obtaining an expedited passport. Prosecutors believe he is also a danger to the community.
Jim Willis, a private investigator who was hired on Clark’s team, said the ticket to Mexico was canceled a few days before Clark was arrested. The suspect was allegedly taking that trip with his sister and her friends.
During his previous bond reduction hearing, a timeline was laid out detailing Clark’s efforts to obtain the expedited passport. His father testified that this past summer, the family discussed taking a trip together, but he became ill, so they did not go.
A receipt entered into evidence dated Sept. 6 showed that Clark’s father paid to obtain a copy of his and his son’s birth certificates. A birth certificate is required to obtain a passport.
On Nov. 21, Clark purchased a Southwest flight to Cancun, according to Willis. A flight itinerary is required to obtain an expedited passport. Detectives on the case claim he searched online for fake plane tickets prior to purchasing a real one, which they flagged as a cause for concern.
After requesting the expedited passport, authorities testified that on Nov. 29, Clark canceled his flight.
On Dec.1, after learning he had picked up the passport, authorities arrested Clark.
Clark’s defense team claimed he was trying to lease an apartment in the days prior to his arrest, raising the question of whether this was an act someone who is trying to flee the country would do.
In a search warrant, police cited video and forensic evidence that led to the murder charge against Clark.
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