Weapons & Guns

Frank Sivero -- known for playing pistol-packing mob guys in movies -- got pinched for real by L.A. cops for carrying a loaded weapon in public ... but the actor tells TMZ something's fishy.

Sivero was busted March 17 at his North Hollywood apartment building. He says he was escorting a lady friend out of the building just after 2 A.M. ... and happened to grab a jacket that had a gun in the pocket -- a .38 special he says he found a few years ago.

According to Sivero ... when they reached the lobby, cops were already there, waiting for him ... and he has no idea why. Frank says cops grabbed him, hauled him outside and searched him ... and that's when they found the gun.

Sivero -- who played Frankie Carbone in "Goodfellas" -- was taken to jail and released several days later. He was not taken to the freezer while in custody.

The silver lining ... all the inmates were big, big fans.

Chief Keef somehow got mixed up in a shooting early Wednesday AM that put someone in the hospital, TMZ has learned.

We called Keef's people to determine the extent of the rapper's involvement -- his lawyer tells us Keef wasn't the shooter ... he just happened to be present when shots were fired.

The Northfield PD says the shooting victim is in ICU.

The rapper really knows how to implicate himself in a crime -- on Monday, Keef plastered his Instagram page with photos of guns, including an AK-47, and the photos appear to serve as a warning. Keef wrote the captions, "Another situation. Already."

And voila ... another situation already.

The Lego-artist who's been posting Lego recreations of the Oscar Pistorius murder trial tells TMZ Sports he's been getting DEATH THREATS from people upset with his work.

We spoke to Armando Tejada ... who says he initially decided to document the Pistorius case because, "I've been fascinated by the trial" ... plus, he had a Legos set from the 2012 Olympics, which came with a tiny Pistorius figure.

The images are NOT graphic -- they mostly chronicle Pistorius interacting with the judge and his lawyer in the South Africa courthouse where his trial is being held.

"I don't plan on posting any graphic depictions of the murder or any scene that shows the victim Reeva Steenkamp out of respect," Tejada tells us.

Still, Tejada -- who lives in Chicago -- says some people are so mad they've threatened his life.

"I've received death threats," Tejada says ... "I understand why people would be upset about it. There's a very thin line and I'm sure I've crossed it."

We're told one of threats involved shooting Tejada with a gun.

A cast member from Thunder From Down Under -- the Las Vegas male strip group -- was hit in the face by a ricocheted bullet after the group confronted an intruder in their dressing room.

According to KVVU in Las Vegas, the cast discovered a man rifling through their belongings in their locker room at the Excalibur Hotel and Casino. The cast confronted the man and pushed him out of the locker room and into a courtyard.

It was then, the station says, the man pulled out a gun and fired a shot in the air. The shot ricocheted off of a wall ... and hit one of the cast members in the face.

Police say the victim's injury was minor and the shooter was taken into custody by police.

No abs were harmed during the ordeal.