{"id":223115,"date":"2026-04-08T08:19:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T08:19:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/223115\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T08:19:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T08:19:20","slug":"li-tjays-group-fought-offsets-friends-before-shooting-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/223115\/","title":{"rendered":"Li Tjay\u2019s group fought Offset\u2019s friends before shooting: report"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Offset<\/p>\n

Offset attended a party for D’USSE Cognac at Eden Roc Miami Beach Dec. 8, 2023. The rapper was wounded in a shooting at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Monday night, April 6, 2026, according to police. <\/p>\n

Miami<\/p>\n

New York hip hop artist Lil Tjay ordered a group of his friends to fight another group that included rapper Offset before a shot was fired<\/a>, striking the Atlanta musician Monday night outside the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, according to an arrest report released to the Miami Herald.<\/p>\n

Offset, whose name is Kiari Kendrall Cephus, 34, was shot and wounded in the melee and taken to Memorial Regional Hospital. Lil Tjay, 24, whose name is Tione Jayden Merritt, was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct. He has since been released from jail.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: After rapper Offset\u2019s shooting at Guitar Hotel, police arrest Lil Tjay<\/a><\/p>\n

The incident started around 7:20 a.m. at the Oculus entrance of the Hard Rock, according to Merritt\u2019s arrest affidavit. There, he \u201cdirected\u201d his entourage to fight Offset\u2019s group, the report states. Merritt filmed the fight with his phone, police say.<\/p>\n

During the fight, a member of Merritt\u2019s crew pulled out a gun and shot Offset, according to the report.<\/p>\n

\"Lil Lil Tjay performs onstage during Powerhouse NYC on October 29, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Roy Rochlin\/Getty Images for iHeartRadio) Roy Rochlin Getty Images for iHeartRadio <\/p>\n

While Offset\u2019s friends tended to him, Merritt ran up to them and began throwing punches, the report states. Seminole Police Department officers arrived and broke up the fight, according to the report.<\/p>\n

As of Tuesday afternoon, no other arrests have been made and there is no update on Offset\u2019s condition, said department spokesman Gary Bitner. The department said earlier that Offset\u2019s injuries were \u201cnon-life threatening.\u201d<\/p>\n

Offset came to fame about a decade ago as a member of the Georgia-based hip hop group Migos. He has three children with Bronx rapper Cardi B, his ex-wife.<\/p>\n

Another member of Migos, known as Takeoff, was shot and killed outside a downtown Houston bowling alley in November 2022.<\/p>\n

Lil Tjay, who is also from the Bronx, has more than 8 million followers on Instagram and is signed to Columbia Records.<\/p>\n

He had much to say when questioned by reporters as he walked out of a Broward County Jail on Tuesday after posting bond, wearing a black T-shirt that was only halfway on, according to a video posted on NBC 6 South Florida\u2019s<\/a> Instagram account. \u201cThe last thing I see was Offset looking at me like this,\u201d Merritt said, adding that the former Migos rapper accused him of being the shooter. \u201cDid I shoot?,\u201d Merritt said. \u201cThat [expletive] is crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

A judge had set his bond at $500. Information on his legal counsel was not immediately available.<\/p>\n

Merritt said he would smack Offset and directed reporters to ask him about what happened Monday night at the casino.<\/p>\n

Miami Herald staff writer Sofia Saric contributed to this report.<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

David Goodhue<\/a><\/p>\n

Miami Herald<\/p>\n

David Goodhue covers the Florida Keys and South Florida for FLKeysNews.com and the Miami Herald. Before joining the Herald, he covered Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of the University of Delaware.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n