Photo: Getty Images
Aaliyah's uncle is blaming his son for the singer's untimely death as the family takes their issues to court.
According to a report TMZ published on Monday, August 31, Barry Hankerson, who was the late singer's uncle and manager, and his record label, Blackground Records, are being sued by his son, Jomo Hankerson, over an alleged breach of a settlement agreement. In his response to the lawsuit, Hankerson claimed he paid his son to coordinate travel plans for Aaliyah to shoot her "Rock The Boat" music video in the Bahamas 25 years ago. He alleged Aaliyah's cousin "failed in his responsibility" to schedule the flights, which forced the singer to book a private jet.
According to The Indepedent, Aaliyah's team boarded a twin-engine Cessna 402 on August 25, 2001. A witness overheard her team argue with the pilot about the amount of luggage and equipment they brought on the plane, which was smaller than the Cessna 404 they arrived in. The pilot warned them that the plane was too full for a "safe flight." Moments after take-off, one of the engines failed, and the plane crashed. Aaliyah, the pilot Luis Morales III, family friend Keith Wallace, Anthony Dodd, security guard Scott Gallin, her hairstylist Eric Forman, make-up artist Christopher Maldonado, and Blackground Records employees Douglas Kratz and Gina Smith didn't survive.
In the lawsuit, Barry Hankerson said the deadly crash "may have been avoided had [Jomo] followed through on his compensated task of travel coordination." He also said his relationship with his son changed after that dreadful day. Jomo has denied all wrongdoing.
Jomo Hankerson is suing his dad for $1.2 million in damages. He claims Barry Hankerson owes him profits from music assets he owns. According to a settlement deal, Jomo claims he's owed 12 percent of funds from recording masters and music publishing copyrights for Aaliyah, Toni Braxton, DMX, and Timbaland. He alleged Barry used Blackground to hide money and "manufacture expenses that have nothing to do with the music assets, all for the purpose of pressuring [him] into accepting less than what he is owed."
Barry Hankerson has denied the allegations his son made.