Rapper Lil Phat AKA Melvin Vernell III murdered outside Georgia hospital

An up-and-coming rapper was shot to death outside a hospital in George last night.

Authorities said Melvin Vernell III, AKA Lil Phat, was sitting in a parked car near the entrance to a hospital in Sandy Springs, Georgia, when he was shot.

The 19-year-old rapper from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are searching for two men who were seen running from the rapper’s vehicle.

It’s was not immediately known why the rapper, who was signed to Trill Entertainment, was parked in front of the hospital.

The rapper was featured on Webbie’s hit single “Independent,” which reached No. 9 on the Hot 100 in 2008.