Will feds seek death penalty against Columbia SC rapper ‘Blacc Zacc’ Chapman?

A Columbia rapper who went to Dreher High School is now under consideration for the death penalty in a murder for hire and racketeering case brought by the U.S. Attorney’s office in South Carolina.

Zachary Chapman, 34, whose rapper name is Blacc Zacc, was indicted in October by a federal grand jury on a host of violent crime and drug offenses, including murder in aid of racketeering. He is in jail in Spartanburg awaiting trial, having been denied bond.

The 22-page indictment, known as a “talking indictment,” alleges in considerable detail that Chapman was the founder and leader of a violent South Carolina gang that engaged in “murder, drug trafficking, robberies and other criminal activity” from 2020 to earlier this year.

But it was not until recent weeks that Chapman’s case became formally in play for the death penalty.

That was when Bill Nettles, a former U.S. Attorney for South Carolina and prominent Columbia defense attorney, was appointed “learned counsel” for Chapman.

In federal death penalty cases, the appointment of a “learned counsel” is a signal of a possible death penalty case.

The term “learned counsel” designates a lawyer who has ably represented clients in prior capital case trials. Such an appointment ensures that the defendant will have experienced representation in death penalty cases, which are regarded as highly complex and subject to numerous appeals.

This week, in an interview with The State, Nettles acknowledged his appointment but declined to say much else about the case.

“It’s early, and we are just starting discovery,” said Nettles, who has tried a half dozen or so death penalty cases as a defense attorney.

The law also requires that Nettles be assisted by another attorney. John Warren, who practices in Nettles’ office near downtown Columbia, was appointed as the second attorney.

It may be several months before a decision is made by U.S. Justice Department officials whether to seek the death penalty.

That’s because once a case is deemed death eligible by the appointment of a “learned counsel,” the case enters a confidential process where all dimensions of the case are examined. That process involves lawyers from the Justice Department, the local U.S. Attorney’s office and Chapman’s defense attorneys. At the end of the process, Justice officials will issue a determination to seek, or not to seek, the death penalty.

Trump emphasizes death penalty

On his first day in office, Jan. 20 of this year, President Donald Trump issued an executive order, blasting former President Joe Biden for commuting the sentences of 37 of the 40 killers on federal death row.

Those Biden pardoned included “remorseless criminals who brutalized young children, strangled and drowned their victims, and hunted strangers for sport,” the executive order said.

“(Biden) commuted their sentences even though the laws of our Nation have always protected victims by applying capital punishment to barbaric acts like theirs,” Trump’s order read.

Trump’s order directed the attorney general to “pursue the death penalty for all crimes of a severity demanding its use.”

Currently, the U.S. Attorney’s office is not commenting on Chapman’s case.

Chapman’s indictment

The gang Chapman allegedly led was called “Dirty Money Entertainment” and was based in South Carolina.

Gang members and associates often wore jewelry and clothing bearing the initials of the gang’s name, DME, and the gang’s circular logo with a dollar sign in the middle and a marijuana leaf on top, the indictment alleged.

Under Chapman, the gang operated out of Columbia from a series of homes he and other gang members used, the indictment said.

Many illegal operations were run out of a house in Blythewood, and the gang used airports in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia and California for its drug smuggling activities, the indictment alleged. Gang members would often get large amounts of cash, travel to Los Angeles and bring back loads of marijuana via the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, the indictment said.

Many gang members came from five Columbia area neighborhoods – Arthurtown, Bluff Estates, Eastway Park, Washington Park and Starlight, the indictment alleged.

DME members were expected to commit crimes for the gang, including retaliating against those who threaten the gang’s reputation, the indictment alleged.

Gang purposes included making money for members, defying law enforcement and enhancing the gang’s reputation, the indictment alleged.

In early September 2021 until Oct. 21 of that year, Chapman directed a scheme to kill a man identified in the indictment only as “C.W.,” who allegedly had stolen a diamond encrusted DME medallion, the indictment said.

After several homicide attempts failed, Chapmen hired a hit man from the Aiken area who eventually shot and killed C.W. on Oct. 21 in a Columbia area apartment complex parking lot, the indictment said.

A Richland County sheriff’s office incident report for that date said that a man was shot to death in his car shortly after 10 p.m. at 1800 Longcreek Drive near the St. Andrews neighborhood. Deputies responding to reports of a shooting were unable to revive the man. The victim had been shot while sitting in the driver’s seat of his car and was restrained by his seat belt, the report said.

The report was heavily redacted and the name of the victim was not given. The location is about a mile southeast of Columbia High School.

However, in a federal document made public in November, the victim was identified as Christian Watson, a DME rival that members believed to have stolen the DME jeweled medallion.

Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said this week his department was involved with the federal investigation of Chapman and his DME gang.

Lott declined, however, to elaborate on the matter, because it is now in federal courts and a possible death penalty case.

But the sheriff did say “Absolutely not” when asked if he had any objection if federal officials decide to seek the death penalty against Chapman.

The federal agency investigating Chapman and DME is the FBI, and FBI agent Jackson Dunne is one of the lead agents on the case, according to court records.

Chapman’s alleged life of crime contrasts sharply with descriptions of his rise as a rapper who went from a local following to a national presence. His Facebook page says he went to Dreher High School. One of his best-known albums is called Carolina Narco.

Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, is one of several lawyers representing Chapman, in addition to Nettles and Warren. Chapman’s other defense lawyers are Derek Shoemake and Justin Holloway, both former federal prosecutors in South Carolina. Rutherford, Shoemake and Holloway were all privately retained.

“My client maintains his innocence and believes at the end he will be vindicated,” Rutherford said. “He is the nicest guy.”

This story was originally published December 4, 2025 at 5:30 AM.