Investigation: Uncovered rap lyrics chronicled man's shooting death

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Rap lyrics entered as evidence in a Richland County murder trial stemming from a fatal December 2011 apparently chronicle the incident, according to the Columbia Police Department's investigation.

Gonzales "Snoop" Wardlaw, 22, was sentenced to life in prison Friday in connection with the murder of 21-year-old Thomas T. Hoefer.

Hoefer was shot in the chest in the parking lot of the Olive Garden on Harbison Boulevard just days after Christmas in 2011.

According to a release from the Lexington County Solicitor's Office, Wardlaw shot Hoefer because he was unhappy with the type of marijuana he received from the victim.

The release goes on to say the CPD investigation into Hoefer's death uncovered rap lyrics, admittedly written by Wardlaw, that describe the incident.

Those lyrics included said "hit 'em in his chest" and "caught 'em at da Olive Garden." The second verse continued, saying that "the penalty for slighting the author is death."

Wardlaw maintained in during the trial that Hoefer owned the .22-caliber pistol used in the shooting and that it was an accident.

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