D12 Rapper Proof was laid to rest yesterday (April 19) at the Fellowship Chapel in Detroit.
Proof, born Deshaun Holton, was shot multiple times and killed inside the C.C.C. club on 8 Mile Road on April 11, during a dispute with a bouncer.
Thousands of people including Eminem, 50 Cent and Obie Trice, attended ceremonies for the slain rapper.
“He taught me how to be a leader,” Eminem said. “I’m sure everybody who ever met him – even just once – can testify to the fact that he illuminated a room when he walked in it. He was a magnet. He lured you in. You wanted to learn about him, follow his swagger. Without Proof, there would be no Eminem, no Slim Shady, no D12. You’re the man.”
“Our community suffers the loss of another young man, who reflects the fact that those whom we love are dying too soon and leaving too quickly,” Reverend Wendell Anthony said during the eulogy. “The other family has also suffered a loss. Two families – both now grieving, a community now grieving.”
Anthony was referring to the death of 36-year-old Sgt. Keith Bender Jr.
Bender and Proof were allegedly involved in a heated argument that eventually turned deadly.
Police claim Proof knocked Bender to the floor, shot him and was prepared to shoot again, when Bender’s cousin Mario Etheridge shot and killed the rapper.
Bender, 36, died from his wounds on Monday (April 17).
Etheridge, 28, has been charged with weapons violations for shooting Proof multiple times.
Etheridge pleaded not guilty and has been released on bail.
In related news, Detroit police are investigating a called-in bomb threat that was made during Proof’s funeral.
Detroit police brought K-9 units to the Fellowship Chapel and searched various cars near the entrance of the church, but nothing was found.