The Florida home rented by TikTok stars the “Island Boys” was raided by a SWAT team on Monday.
Andrew James Thomas, 20, was taken into custody on a warrant naming him as the suspect in the drive-by shooting of 8-year-old Ronziyah Atkins in Belle Glade on Friday.
Ronziyah was playing outside her home when a gunman opened fire from a passing vehicle, Complex.com reported. The child was the only victim hit by gunfire. She was pronounced dead at a hospital.
The same home was sprayed by gunfire on Sunday. No one was injured in that shooting.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Thomas was identified with the help of cooperating witnesses.
A tip led officers from the Violent Crimes Division and Gang Unit to a Coral Springs mansion where Thomas was believed to be hiding out.
A search warrant was executed at the home rented by the social media stars, who were not named in the warrant.
Thomas was charged with first-degree murder with a firearm, attempted first-degree murder with a firearm and felon in possession of a firearm.
Thomas has a criminal history that includes an arrest in 2019 for armed robbery. He was sentenced to six years probation.
Dovi Bezner, manager of the Island Boys, told WPBF Thomas is childhood friends with the Island Boys. He said Thomas showed up on Friday and crashed on their couch.
“We had no idea any of this was going on, really. We just knew him as a quiet kid and he would come and hang out and do his thing and go back to whatever he got going on,” Bezner said.
The Island Boys are 20-year-old twin brothers Alex and Franky Venegas, aka Flyysoulja and Kodiyakredd. They are best known for their freestyle rap “Island Boys” that went viral on TikTok in 2021.
Island Boy Alex Vanegas told WPBF he cried when he realized his friend was being arrested on first-degree murder charges.
Bezner said the Boys knew Thomas had a criminal record but they didn’t believe he was violent.
“If we knew anything like this was going on we wouldn’t have allowed him on the property,” Bezner said.
