Rapper The Game and Snoop donate money to family of Slain girl of Moreno Valley

American Zombie Thu Sep 12, 2013 3:54 am

MORENO VALLEY: Rappers The Game and Snoop Lion help fund slain girl’s funeral

Rapper The Game and Snoop donate money to family of Slain girl of Moreno Valley W_TIANA_0912a_3VL12B68R

/CONTRIBUTED IMAGE

A photo of Tiana Ricks, 6, of Long Beach, who was shot and killed in Moreno Valley on Saturday, Sept. 7.
A Text Size Rapper The Game and Snoop donate money to family of Slain girl of Moreno Valley Size-up

Rapper The Game and Snoop donate money to family of Slain girl of Moreno Valley Size-up

Rapper The Game and Snoop donate money to family of Slain girl of Moreno Valley Size-down

BY SUZANNE HURT
STAFF WRITER
September 11, 2013; 07:21 PM

Rappers The Game and Snoop Lion have contributed thousands of dollars to funeral costs for 6-year-old Tiana Ricks, who was gunned down in Moreno Valley.
More than $15,000 has been donated after Jayceon Terrell Taylor, a West Coast rapper and former gang member known on stage as The Game, gave $10,000 on Tuesday, Sept. 10, and Snoop, whose real name is Calvin Broadus Jr., donated an undisclosed amount, according to social media sources and family. Others donated $5,427 through GiveForward.com to help defray the costs of burial and sending the girl’s body back home to Long Beach. Tiana's funeral is set for Saturday.
The Game, who grew up in Compton, read about the Saturday, Sept. 7, shooting and tracked down the girl’s mother, Marquia Macklin, on Instagram.com. He then donated $10,000 to funeral costs as part of his pledge to give away $1 million around the globe through The Robin Hood Project before Christmas, he said in an Instagram post on the project’s page.
“This very sad story hit me in a place nothing ever has,” he posted, along with a photo of the girl.
Posting as “Miss Macklin @lost_the_love_of_my_life,” Ricks’ mother thanked Snoop — who is from Long Beach — for a donation, as well. She also posted photos of her daughter, who was killed shortly before she would have turned 7 on Sept. 21.
The girl and her father, Tyrell Ricks Jr., 26, were shot by the same bullet at 9:38 p.m. Saturday in the driveway of a relative’s home on Harker Lane, where a family celebration was underway.
Tyrell Ricks Jr. had picked up his daughter and was trying to flee after two men walked up the driveway, shouted what sounded like a gang name and then opened fire. They were both taken to a hospital, where Tiana Ricks died shortly after midnight Sunday, Sept. 8. Police have said the shooting was gang-related; Ricks’ family has said he has no gang affiliation.
No arrests had been made as of late afternoon Wednesday, Sept. 11, and no additional information about the suspects was available, said Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Julio Oseguera.
The girl’s grandmother, Shedralyn Ricks, also confirmed The Game’s donation but couldn’t discuss whether any other celebrities had contacted the family to offer help.
Dozens of people have posted photos and comments on Instragram.com under #JusticeForTiana