Man allegedly shot by rapper dies

DETROIT, April 18 (UPI) -- The man allegedly shot by Detroit rapper Proof before Proof himself was killed by a third party last week died early Tuesday.

Keith Bender, 35, of Detroit, had been in critical condition since the shooting and died one week later at St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, the Detroit Free Press reported.

Police say Proof, whose real name was Deshawn Holton, shot Bender during an illegal after-hours party at the C.C.C. club.

Police and prosecutors say Proof was then gunned down by Bender's cousin, Mario Etheridge, who has been charged with weapons violations but not with the killing. Michigan law allows the use of lethal force to protect oneself or another person from a deadly attack, the Free Press noted.

Detroit police, meanwhile, said they would beef up security for Tuesday's viewing for the rapper at Fellowship Chapel.

"Anytime you have a funeral of a person who is publicly known, it calls for extra security to handle crowd control," police spokesman James Tate told the Free Press. "This definitely is not the first type of funeral we would handle in this type of manner."

City officials also announced Tuesday they would move to close C.C.C., which has been the site of several raids, and crack down on illegal after-hours drinking spots around Detroit.