Suspected Bank-Robbing Rapper Surrenders

5th Ward Boyz Member Charged in Three Holdups

Nov. 7, 2000

By Frances Ann Burns

HOUSTON (APBnews.com) -- A member of a Texas rap group suspected of robbing three banks in a local suburb has surrendered to face federal charges.

Andre Erell Barnes, 27, a founding member of the rap group 5th Ward Boyz, is being held in a federal detention center in Houston, said Detective Eric Price of the Friendswood Police Department.

Barnes turned himself in Friday. He was accompanied by his lawyer.

Threatening notes

Barnes became a suspect after the second robbery in mid-October when a car spotted by a witness was traced to an ex-girlfriend of the singer's. An arrest warrant was issued at the end of October.

Price said that police and the FBI had been keeping an eye on Barnes' neighborhood, friends and relatives.

"I suppose he just couldn't handle the heat any more," the detective said.

Barnes is charged with holdups at the Hometown Bank of Friendswood on Oct. 2, Guaranty Federal on Oct. 10 and a Bank One branch on Oct. 27. In all three robberies, a man walked into the bank in the early afternoon and gave tellers a threatening note demanding money.

None of the stickups involved a weapon, although some witnesses had said they believed the robber had concealed a gun under his clothes.

Music depicts jail life

Barnes is one of the original members of the 5th Ward Boyz, which has released several albums on the Rap-to-Rap label, including Ghetto Dope, Rated G and Usual Suspects.

The group's most recent album is Recognize the Real. The lyrics include graphic descriptions of street and prison life.