Bio

Andre Dow, known by the stage name Mac Minister, is an American rapper from San Francisco, California. Public sources identify him with the Bay Area hip-hop scene, especially the Fillmore District of San Francisco. He became known as an underground West Coast rap figure and was connected to artists and circles in the Bay Area rap community.

Before the murder case, Dow was known more for his music associations and public conflicts in the rap industry than for mainstream commercial success. MTV reported that he had worked with or appeared around artists connected to the West Coast rap scene, including Too Short and Snoop Dogg. His name also appeared in media coverage in 2000 after a fight involving Bay Area rapper E-40 at the Source Awards.

The case that later led to his conviction was tied by prosecutors to the killing of Bay Area rapper Andre “Mac Dre” Hicks. Mac Dre was shot and killed in Kansas City, Missouri, in November 2004. Anthony “Fat Tone” Watkins, a Kansas City rapper, had been rumored to be connected to Mac Dre’s killing, although MTV and later reports noted that police had cleared Watkins as a suspect in that case.

According to prosecutors, Dow later became involved in a retaliation plot against Watkins. The state alleged that Dow and Jason “Corleone” Mathis lured Watkins and his friend Jermaine “Cowboy” Akins to Las Vegas under a false promise connected to the music business. Dow’s defense argued that he and Watkins were not enemies and that they had traveled together in connection with music opportunities, but the jury rejected the defense and convicted Dow of murder and conspiracy.

Murder Story

In May 2005, Kansas City rapper Anthony “Fat Tone” Watkins and his friend Jermaine “Cowboy” Akins traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada. Prosecutors later argued that Andre Dow, known as Mac Minister, helped lure both men there by suggesting they could meet Snoop Dogg and discuss a possible concert-promotion opportunity.

Watkins and Akins were last seen leaving the MGM Grand hotel with Dow. Prosecutors said security camera footage showed Dow leaving the hotel with the two men only hours before they were killed. Their bodies were later found at or near a construction site outside Las Vegas. Reports state both victims had been shot multiple times.

The victims were identified as Anthony “Fat Tone” Watkins, age 24, and Jermaine “Cowboy” Akins, age 22. The killing was investigated as a double homicide. Authorities believed the murders were connected to ongoing tension between some Bay Area and Kansas City rap circles after the November 2004 killing of Mac Dre in Kansas City. Prosecutors described the Las Vegas killings as retaliation for Mac Dre’s death.

After the murders, police wanted to question Dow, but he did not remain available to investigators. In July 2005, police reportedly stopped him near the Golden Gate Bridge, but he fled. In November 2005, he was indicted on two counts of murder and two counts of conspiracy to commit murder. He remained a fugitive for months.

The case received national attention after Dow was profiled on America’s Most Wanted. On March 2, 2006, the FBI and San Francisco police arrested him in a San Francisco apartment after receiving a tip. MTV reported that a San Francisco SWAT team assisted and that Dow was detained that evening after some resistance.

Dow was later tried in Clark County, Nevada. On July 21, 2008, a Las Vegas jury found him guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of conspiracy to commit murder for the deaths of Watkins and Akins. The trial lasted less than a week.

Jason Mathis, also known as “Corleone,” was separately convicted in the same double murder case. Prosecutors argued that Dow and Mathis worked together in the killings. A Clark County jury also sentenced Mathis to life imprisonment without parole.

After Dow’s conviction, jurors recommended life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Reports from the time state that he was sentenced in 2008 to life without parole. Later reporting confirms that Dow has remained imprisoned while continuing to challenge his conviction.

In later years, Dow continued to maintain that he was wrongfully convicted. The San Francisco Standard reported in 2022 that one key prosecution witness had recanted testimony and that Dow was seeking release based on new evidence. However, later Nevada appellate records show that his post-conviction petition was denied and that the denial was affirmed in 2024.

Andre Dow, known as Mac Minister, remains imprisoned for the murders of Anthony Watkins and Jermaine Akins. His case remains known because of its connection to the aftermath of Mac Dre’s killing and the public attention surrounding tensions between parts of the Bay Area and Kansas City rap scenes.