“Billions” actor Akili McDowell is facing a murder charge over a fatal shooting that happened at a parking lot in Houston on July 20. Per the New York Post, McDowell, 21, was initially charged with theft on August 1, but authorities subsequently brought a murder charge against him the following day.
“Homicide Investigators charged Akili McDowell (21) with murder in the shooting death of Cesar Peralta (20). McDowell was recently taken into custody and booked into the Harris County Jail,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez wrote in a Facebook post on August 3.
Gonzalez also said the investigation is ongoing and urged anyone with information about the fatal incident to contact authorities. McDowell’s bond for the theft and murder crimes was set at $400,210.
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Besides Billions, McDowell also made a name for himself by starring in series including The Astronaut Wives Club and David Makes Man. McDowell was just 15 when he starred in OWN’s David Makes Man.
In a 2015 interview with Oprah Winfrey, the 21-year-old touched on that series, saying that “you can be something. You don’t have to settle for what everybody may think you’re going to be. You can work to be better. And you can be better.”
In another interview with Vulture, he further touched on his character and how it was connected to his personal life. “With David being raised by a single mother and him feeling like he had to be the man of the house at such an early age and make all these grown folks’ decisions and things like that, I’ve also felt like that in my life,” he said.
He continued: “He just wants to be there for his mom. She doesn’t gotta worry about David. That’s what he wants. David’s gonna do his job; David gonna get things done. And I felt that way in my life as well.”
