T.I.'s Personal Assistant Dies After Shootout

One of the members of rapper T.I.'s entourage who was shot early on Wednesday morning in Cincinnati, Ohio has died.

Philant Johnson, 26, died in hospital after being shot while travelling in a van in the southbound lane of Interstate 75. He was T.I.'s friend, personal assistant and an employee of his Atlantic-affiliated Grand Hustle Records label.

Three other people connected with T.I. (real name Clifford Harris) were wounded. Janice Gillespie, 22, is in hospital in stable condition. Security guard Ronald Hausley, 40, and driver Elijah Edwards, 31, were treated in hospital and released. The 25-year-old rap star was uninjured.

According to witness reports published in the Cincinnati Enquirer, problems began at a post-concert after-hours party at the Club Ritz nightclub when a large number of men became offended when money was thrown from the stage by a member of T.I.'s posse.

"It was supposed to be for the ladies," said a witness. "But [the money] was hitting the guys in the face and they were like, 'We got money, so why are you throwing money at us?'"

T.I. pulled his crew out of the club after the tension mounted, and a witness claims that four men then got into two SUVs and started pursuing two vans carrying the money-tosser and his cronies. A gun battle soon ensued and the two vans were left riddled with bullets. Reports indicate that Johnson, Hausley and Edwards were in one van, while Gillespie was in the other.

No arrests have been made and police are still investigating.

Police asked the Cincinnati City Council to close Club Ritz early last year after several incidents, but council members voted against it. Last June, three people were shot in front of the club after a fight moved outside.

T.I.'s new King album debuted at #1 on the U.S. sales chart and sold more than 500,000 copies in its first week. He started a tour last month and was scheduled to perform in St. Louis on Wednesday night. T.I. also played a teen in the recently released film, ATL.