Father of drill rapper whose party was targeted in mass shooting hit with federal weapons charges
Melvin Doyle, 49, who has multiple felony convictions in his background, was arrested on Monday after he allegedly sold three pistols for $3,000, according to a criminal complaint brought this week in U.S. District Court.
Agents with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives found Doyle sitting in his Lincoln SUV in the 6500 block of South Yale Avenue, about a mile and a half from the site of the transaction, the charges alleged. Doyle was still wearing a holster on his waist that fit the one of the Glock pistols he'd sold, and he was carrying $1,100 in cash, all in $100 denominations, the complaint alleged.
A cell phone Doyle had had also been used to communicate with the purchasers of the weapons, the complaint alleged.
Doyle is the father of Melanie Doyle, the drill rapper known as Mello Buckzz, according to a law enforcement source. A rising artist who recently collaborated with rap superstar G Herbo, she was hosting an album release party at a River North club on July 2 when a gunman from a passing vehicle fired into the crowd outside, killing four and wounding 14 others. No arrests have been made.
Though the investigation into Melvin Doyle's weapons sales was not related to the mass shooting, there has been concern among law enforcement about gang retaliation. His daughter on social media claims an affiliation with 'NLMB,' a gang faction based in the South Shore and Greater Grand Crossing neighborhoods where her father still resides.
NLMB has feuded openly with opposing South Side gangs, sources have said, where each has used their music and social media to taunt each other before sometimes exchanging hits on opposition members. On social media channels, Melanie Doyle has said that her significant other and best friend were among those killed.
Melvin Doyle, meanwhile, has an extensive criminal record dating back to his late teens.
He was charged with attempted murder in 1995, pleaded guilty in 1998 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison, records show. Details about the case were not immediately available.
Cook County court records show that the same day that the attempted murder charge was filed, Doyle was also charged with murder in the March 1995 killing of a 23-month-old boy, who was hit by gunfire intended for a rival gang member. In that case, Doyle was found not guilty in a bench trial in July 1998, about a month before he pleaded guilty in the attempted murder, according to court records.
Doyle also has two other convictions for narcotics possession, and in 2010 he was charged with armed home invasion and aggravated domestic battery stemming from an incident in Skokie. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced in August 2011 to 12 years.
The current case charges Melvin Doyle with a single count of illegal possession of a firearm by a felon. The complaint, however, details a series of transactions that began in May and continued until his arrest Monday,
Doyle had an initial appearance at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse on Tuesday, where prosecutors asked that he be held pending trial. A detention hearing is scheduled for Friday.
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