Aaliyah‘s uncle, Barry Hankerson, believes that his son, Jomo Hankerson, is partly to blame for the late singer’s death.
According to court documents obtained by Us on Monday, August 31, Barry claimed that Jomo “was compensated to accompany and coordinate the travel of his late cousin, Aaliyah, to a music video shoot taking place in the Bahamas.”
In August 2001, Aaliyah was killed in a plane crash alongside seven additional individuals on board. She was 22.
Barry alleged that Jomo “failed in his responsibility to accompany and coordinate the travel of his late cousin.” He claimed that the travel Aaliyah took was “not coordinated” by Jomo, before alleging the incident “may have been avoided” whether Jomo “followed through on his compensated task of travel coordination.”
Aaliyah traveled to the Bahamas to film the music video for her song “Rock the Boat.” After filming wrapped, the musician decided to leave the Bahamas a day early with several members of her crew. Less than a minute after takeoff, the plane crashed 200 feet from the runway and burst into flames. Aaliyah and five others were instantly killed while the remaining three passengers died shortly after.
In the docs, Barry claimed that his relationship with Jomo wasn’t the same after the tragedy. Since Aaliyah’s death, the pair’s legal battle has only intensified.
Jomo filed a lawsuit against his father and Blackground Records in April for allegedly violating their settlement deal with recording masters and music publishing rights for the music of Aaliyah, Toni Braxton, DMX and Timbaland. He is seeking over $1.2 million in damages.
Jomo claimed that he is owed 12 percent of the money Barry earned from the music assets. He accused his dad of using the record label to hide money and “manufacture expenses that have nothing to do with the music assets, all for the purpose of pressuring [him] into accepting less than what he is owed.”
“Worse, Barry Hankerson has threatened Jomo Hankerson, telling him that his rights to any proceeds related to the Music Assets will be extinguished should he choose to file suit against Barry Hankerson, an outrageous proposition at odds with Georgia law and public policy and designed and intended for one purpose and one purpose only — to cheat Jomo Hankerson out of his share of the Music Assets,” the filing read.
Barry has denied the allegations, claiming Jomo’s settlement is not valid because it was allegedly executed under fraud. Jomo has also denied all claims of wrongdoing, including his father’s allegations regarding Aaliyah’s untimely death. The case remains ongoing at the time of publication.
