David Makes Man’s Akili McDowell Charged With Murder in Houston Shooting

Akili McDowell. Leon Bennett/WireImage

David Makes Man star Akili McDowell has been charged with murder in a Houston, Texas, shooting that occurred in an apartment complex parking lot last month.

“On July 20, 2024, Harris County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to an incident that occurred in the parking lot of an apartment complex at 13503 North Thorntree, near Wallisville and Uvalde (East Harris County),” Harris County Sheriff’s Deputy Ed Gonzalez wrote in a Facebook statement on Saturday, August 3. “An adult male (possibly in his 20s) sustained gunshot wounds and was pronounced deceased at the scene. Suspect(s) fled the scene.”

McDowell, 21, was arrested and booked on Thursday, August 1, into the Harris County Jail on a $400,000 bond with charges of murder and theft, per TVLine. The victim was identified as 20-year-old Cesar Peralta.

“Arrest update: Homicide Investigators charged Akili McDowell (21) with murder in the shooting death of Cesar Peralta (20). McDowell was recently taken into custody and booked into the Harris County Jail,” Gonzalez wrote via Facebook. “The investigation is on-going and we encourage anyone with info to contact the Homicide Unit at 713-274-9100.”

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McDowell has a court appearance on Tuesday, August 6, for the theft charge and on October 9 for the murder charge, per Deadline.

In a statement to Law&Crime, McDowell’s manager Jonell Whitt said on Monday, “[T]his is an unfortunate situation and I am in prayer for Akili and those impacted by this tragedy. I respectfully have no comment at this time.”

Akili McDowell. Steve Granitz/WireImage

Us Weekly reached out to McDowell’s rep.

McDowell is best known for his role in David Makes Man, where he starred as the series’ titular character. After the series premiered in 2019, McDowell opened up about how he related to David.

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“That’s why it was so important to me that I get this audition because, honestly, with David being raised by a single mother and him feeling like he had to be the man of the house at such an early age and make all these grown folks’ decisions and things like that, I’ve also felt like that in my life,” McDowell told Vulture in 2019. “He just wants to be there for his mom. She doesn’t gotta worry about David. That’s what he wants. David’s gonna do his job; David gonna get things done. And I felt that way in my life as well.”