Jennifer Hudson's Family Didn't Take Balfour's Threats Seriously

Jennifer Hudson's Family Didn't Take Balfour's Threats Seriously

A friend of Jennifer Hudson says he tried to warn the family about William "Flex" Balfour, who is currently considered a "person of interest" in the shooting deaths of Hudson's mom, Darnell; brother, Jason and 7-year-old nephew, Julian.

Balfour, 27 - who is divorced from Hudson's sister, Julia, a bus driver - got into a huge fight with Julia, Darnell and Jason about a month ago, a neighbor says in the newest issue of Us Weekly. James Peyton, Hudson's ex-fiance, was also present.



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"Flex tried to start a fistfight with Jason, and James beat up Flex," the neighbor adds.

Shortly after, Flex began to threaten the family, saying "he would kill Julia and mess up everyone in the house," the source tells Us.

The supposed reason of the feud? TMZ.com reports Balfour clashed with the family after Julia claimed he sold one of their cars without permission.

"Flex was crazy, but Jason never took him seriously," the source tells Us. "Jason always thought he would be safe, that he could protect himself."

The estranged couple had screaming matches, and had "been having problems, but I never expected anything like this," neighbor Angela Russell admits to Us.

(Flex's mother, Michele Davis Balfour, insists her son "had nothing to do with this.")

Balfour is currently being held on violation of parole stemming from an attempted murder conviction in 1999. The AP reports that he was arrested on June 19 for allegedly having a rock of crack cocaine in his car - but his parole was not revoked then.

Meanwhile, Hudson is determined to hold her family together as she grieves for her mother, brother and nephew - whom she was especially close to.

"Jennifer was like [Julian's] second mom," Ernest Moore, a neighbor who is related by marriage, tells Us. "Whenever she was around, she spent a lot of time with the boy."

For more on Hudson's heartbreak, and how the family will move forward, pick up the newest issue of Us Weekly, on stands now.