Weapons & Guns

Michael Rotondo -- the 30-year-old man who was taken to court by his mom and dad to get him booted out of their house -- is packing up to leave ... but it has not gone smoothly.

Rotondo tells TMZ ... he called the cops on his father in the midst of the moving process because his dad refused to hand over some toys he wanted to pack for his child -- yes, Michael has a son.

We're told when cops arrived, they asked Rotondo if any weapons were involved in his altercation with his dad and he said no ... but revealed he does own a gun and showed them where he kept it. Cops offered to store it for him since he's dealing with a volatile situation and he could get it back later ... but Michael decided to keep it and added it to the moving pile.

He tells us he still didn't get the toys back from his dad, though.

Rotondo says he's got to be out of his parents' home by Friday at noon, so he's putting most of his stuff in storage. He'll be staying at an Airbnb nearby for $25/night for a week ... which included a free night.

After that, he tells us he's going to stay with a distant cousin ... he just needs to iron out the details.

Nikolas Cruz recorded a chilling video of himself meticulously plotting how he was about to carry out a deadly attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The Broward State Attorney's Office released the video Wednesday as prosecutors prepare to possibly ask for a death penalty trial. In one of the videos, Cruz looks into his cell phone and says, "With the power of my AR you will all know who I am." Prosecutors would not say when exactly the videos were made, though Cruz suggests in one video he was going to carry out the mass shooting later that day.

Cruz killed 17 people on February 14 ... a deadly outcome that triggered massive nationwide protests for better gun control spearheaded by the Parkland kids.

Ronda Rousey says she'd be honored to host the Indiana school teacher who risked his life to save his students during a shooting this week ... assuming the guy's a fan of WWE.

We got Ronda touching down in D.C. Sunday ahead of Monday Night Raw in neighboring Richmond, VA, and she tells us she'd have no problem allowing 29-year-old Jason Seaman of Noblesville West Middle School walk her into the ring at one of her matches.

In case you hadn't heard, Jason is being hailed as a hero after he's said to have tackled an unnamed suspect who opened fire in one of his classes Friday, saving countless lives.

Shawn Mendes just honored victims of gun violence with an emotional tribute at the Billboard Music Awards ... and with the help of students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas.

Shawn took the stage Sunday to perform his song "Youth," and was joined by singer Khalid ... who's featured on the song. Toward the end of the performance, multiple students from MSD's choir came out as well to help him finish out the tune.

We broke the story ... Shawn was aiming to send an uplifting message with the Parkland students' cameo -- especially in the wake of another school shooting this week that left 10 people dead.

The student arrested for gunning down 10 people at his high school appeared to be nothing more than a church-going dancer mere days before the shooting.

TMZ has obtained video of 17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzis participating in a choreographed dance for his Greek Orthodox church the weekend before he allegedly shot and killed 8 of his peers and 2 teachers.

Sources connected to the event tell us the dance was part of a larger Greek festival in a town about 30 minutes away from Santa Fe, TX where he went to school. The performance was rehearsed well before showtime -- Pagourtzis was involved from the start.

Another harrowing detail ... we're told those who knew or knew of Pagourtzis never saw any signs that would indicate he would go absolutely mad.

Pagourtzis has been charged with multiple counts of capital murder and aggravated assault on a public servant after allegedly opening fire Friday at Santa Fe High School -- killing 10 and injuring many others. Cops say he used a shotgun and a revolver as weapons.

Chris Paul is speaking out about the Texas school shooting that happened roughly 35 miles from Houston on Friday ... and he's calling for change to prevent similar tragedies from happening again.

“First and foremost, aside from the playoffs going on, which is minor compared to what is taking place down in Santa Fe," Paul said Friday morning at Rockets practice.

"Our prayers going out to the victims and the families having to deal with that situation."

FYI, 10 people were killed and several more injured at Santa Fe HS when a shooter opened fire inside the building.

"We have a lot of fan support there. Those people come out and support us night in, night out. So, this is very minor compared to what those people are dealing with.”

President Trump's call to Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr. left a lot to be desired ... according to James.

We talked to him Wednesday on the heels of his $241k donation to the Waffle House shooting victims and their families ... and his Monday phone call from the White House. While James was quick to thank the Prez for reaching out, he also described the conversation as "lackluster."

It's worth noting, the call came 22 days after James heroically wrestled an AR-15 from a gunman ... saving countless lives. He acknowledged, Trump's a busy guy.

James also revealed he's having trouble at his job due to one giant misperception about him. Still, he says he's focused on his mission -- he just started a community service group in Nashville.

James Shaw Jr. -- the man who heroically disarmed the Waffle House gunman last month and saved lives -- just met with a bunch of fellow young heroes trying to save many more lives in the future.

James shared a pic with Parkland student leader Emma Gonzalez Saturday, saying he met one of his heroes today. Fellow student activist David Hogg also shared a photo with Shaw, saying ... "Wow, just wow ... lots of work ahead but the young people will win. #YPWW"

Sources close to David tell us ... he and a group of Parkland peeps drove to meet with James because he's a hero. We're told they had breakfast together at Denny's in Miami, and they're all hopeful to work with him in the future if the opportunity arises.

That seems highly possible, especially since James says meeting with the young adults of the Parkland incident with "so much fire and inspiration in their eyes was a great joy."

Yo Gotti's concert Friday night was interrupted by the sound of nearby gunfire, and a person was shot dead.

It happened near the Uptown Theater in Kansas City, Missouri. The rapper was on stage at around 11:30 PM when police got a call that someone had been shot in a nearby parking lot.

Police and paramedics raced to the scene and when they got there they pronounced the victim dead.

Witnesses say a fight had broken out and in the middle of the melee someone fired a gun.

Law enforcement can't say for sure if the people involved in the fight and shooting had attended the concert, but given the time of night and the proximity to the venue it appears there's some connection.

One of the people robbed at gunpoint outside the UFC 224 host hotel in Brazil is a famous MMA manager, who tells TMZ Sports ... the robbers shoved their weapons right in their faces.

Very scary moment for Brian Butler-Au -- who manages big fighters like Max Holloway -- and is in Rio to support his fighter, Brian “BOOM” Kelleher, who's fighting on the main card at UFC 224.

Butler-Au says he was at a table on the beach with roughly 10 other people when the 3 men with guns rushed over and pulled out weapons.

"This guy walked up beside me ... he pulled out this handgun that had an extended magazine on it, put it up in my face and then he grabbed my phone."

Butler-Au says the 3 men -- none of whom were wearing masks -- ordered everyone to hand over their valuables ... and even ripped a necklace right off one of the women at the table.

"It happened really fast, but also in slow motion," Butler-Au says.

Eventually, the gunmen sprinted to a getaway car and fled the scene. Butler-Au says his group went right back to their hotel and started working with UFC security and local police.

The guy in the opening scene of Childish Gambino's "This Is America" video is NOT Trayvon Martin's dad, Tracy ... contrary to a flurry of social media buzz.

The guy in question is actor/musician Calvin the Second, who hopes Tracy doesn't see the video because he fears it will traumatize him.

Calvin told us he started getting calls this weekend from people who gave him a heads-up ... he was being confused for Tracy. Calvin was shocked, because he and Tracy don't look alike ... apart from the beard. He passed it off as "fake news," until he started thinking about the impact it might have on Trayvon's dad.

Calvin says he felt bad for Tracy since Gambino's video is filled with gun violence. Trayvon was only 17 when he was gunned down in Florida in 2012, and his killer was later found not guilty.

For the record ... Calvin says he wasn't hired to be a Tracy look-alike, and there's another bearded guy with whom he's often confused. You can probably guess who.

Tekashi69's manager appears to be off the hook for the Barclays Center shooting last month -- 'cause cops arrested a different alleged member of 6ix9ine's crew for that one.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ cops arrested Fuguan Lovick on Sunday, and booked him for first-degree reckless endangerment for a shooting inside the Brooklyn arena during a recent Adrien Broner boxing match.

We broke the story ... Tekashi's group got into a scuffle with a rival rap crew, and cops believe someone in his camp fired a weapon. No one was hit, and no one was arrested at the time.

While cops initially believed Tekashi's manager, Tr3way, might've been the guy who fired the lone shot ... we're told police firmly believe it was, in fact, Lovick who discharged the weapon. However, Tr3way is still under investigation for another shooting just hours before the event, when he was allegedly caught on camera chasing after a tailing car.

UFC star Paige VanZant says her USO military tour wasn't just laughs and choking exhibitions ... one of the bases she visited was attacked while she was there!

"We got shot at," Paige said on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1) ... "One of the bases we were at got shot at!"

"We all had to like duck and hide under the table until it was all clear ... until they could deflect the fire coming into the base."

Unclear which U.S. military base took the fire -- but Paige says the attack went down last month, while she and Max Holloway were visiting troops in several countries ... including Japan and Afghanistan.

"It was really scary," Paige said ... "but it was awesome and it was worth it because I got to see what our troops go through every single day."

Kodak Black is wiping the slate clean by dumping his name and flipping his initials -- cause he's now Bill K. Kapri ... and it's all legal and stuff.

TMZ has learned the currently jailed rapper requested, and was granted, the name change by a Florida judge. Bill's attorney, Bradford Cohen tells us his client wanted a "fresh start" in the middle of everything going on with him now. Fun fact: His real name was Dieuson Octave.

We're told he'll still go by Kodak, professionally, when he gets out of jail ... possibly as early as October. As we've reported, he's doing time in a Florida jail for 2 probation violations.

More good news for Bill -- a child services investigation against him has been dropped ... according to Cohen. We're told the agency launched its probe after the January arrest where his child was in the house along with marijuana and ammunition.

Bill has been taking parenting classes while he's in jail, along with working on his GED. Congrats, BK.

Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr. appeared on 'Ellen' and revealed that his favorite player is Dwyane Wade ... so, guess who Ellen brought out onstage?!

BOOM! SHE BROUGHT OUT D-WADE!!!

The moment was incredible ... Wade told Shaw that he doesn't just consider him an "American hero" -- but he's also the perfect role model for his kids.

Shaw was clearly touched by Wade's words -- but it didn't stop there.

Wade asked Shaw what good he hopes can come from the terrible April 22 shooting in Nashville, TN -- and Shaw said he's now on a mission to bring awareness to mental health problems in the U.S.

Wade, again impressed, then brought out a special gift to help Shaw fulfill his mission.

Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr. -- the man who wrestled an AR-15 out of the hands of a shooter -- got one helluva hero's welcome at the Nashville Predators game Sunday ... and it was awesome!

The NHL team invited Shaw and his family as VIP guests to the playoff game vs. the Winnipeg Jets to thank him for the bravery he showed during the April 22 attack at a Nashville-area Waffle House.

Before the game, Shaw (wearing a shirt that said, "Spread Love") met with Preds coach, Peter Laviolette -- who presented Shaw with his own personalized jersey.

During the game, Shaw was featured on the big stadium screen at Bridgestone Arena and the crowd went WILD!!

As for the game, it was a fight -- but the Predators managed to pull off a 5-4 victory in double overtime.

By the way, Shaw's injuries seem to be doing a lot better. He's no longer wearing the wraps around his hands -- which he had burned by grabbing the piping hot barrel of the gun, after it had fired several rounds, and ripping it away from the shooter.