Weapons & Guns

Gunna has ended his months-long incarceration by pleading guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge in the YSL RICO case.

The Grammy-nominated rapper entered a pre-negotiated plea known as an Alford plea Wednesday and was sentenced to 5 years -- with one year commuted for the time he's already served. The remaining 4 will be suspended, pending community service and other special conditions.

In a statement, Gunna says he didn’t think of YSL as a gang circa 2016 when his rap career began to pop off, and only focused only on the entertainment aspects … even if it meant an exaggeration of the “Black urban” lifestyle.

He also laid emphasis that his guilty plea didn’t mean any cooperation against any other YSL members … and his Alford plea acknowledges his own association with YSL.

Gunna says he’s looking forward to giving back to his community and wants to youth to know that gangs and violence are gateways to their destruction.

Cleveland Cavaliers star Kevin Love -- one of the NBA's most outspoken proponents of mental health -- is mourning the loss of Stephen "tWitch" Boss on Wednesday ... and is urging people to reach out to their loved ones and to spread kindness to prevent future tragedies.

Love took to Instagram to send his condolences to the famed Ellen DeGeneres talk show DJ ... sharing a photo of Boss with an emotional message.

"Everyone is going through something that you can't see," Love wrote on the social media post. "Be kind. Reach out. Spread LOVE."

TMZ broke the story ... tWitch was found dead on Tuesday from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 40 years old.

Others in the sports world were rocked by the news ... former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Emmanuel Acho shared a recent video of the two laughing and dancing on his Twitter page Wednesday morning.

"You’ll be missed by brother," Acho said. "You’ll be missed. Thanks for always laughing and smiling with me."

"Stephen 'tWitch' gone way too soon. RIP tWitch."

Added ex-NFL star Robert Griffin III, "Praying for Stephen 'tWitch' Boss' family and love ones today. Gone too soon."

Former Saints receiver Lance Moore, NFL reporter Michele Tafoya, and pro wrestler Red Velvet also shared their thoughts and prayers after learning of the news Wednesday.

Megan Thee Stallion is in court for the second day of Tory Lanez's shooting trial ... letting cameras know how she's feeling as fans cheer her on outside the building.

Megan stepped into a DTLA courthouse Tuesday ... giving a thumbs up when asked how she was doing. The rapper was also asked if she's nervous about the trial, but shakes her head at that one.

Meg had a bunch of fans in her corner, too ... with a group of her supporters holding up banners and signs -- and even wearing shirts that all say "We stand with Megan."

Not everyone is backing the Megan train, though -- as she walked into court, one person shouted out, "Why you lying on that boy?" No reaction from Meg and co., though.

As we reported, Tory's trial kicked off Monday, with both sides laying out what they say happened the night Meg was allegedly shot in the foot. Prosecutors clearly say Tory pulled the trigger, while Tory's attorneys have laid out alternative theories, including pointing out some possible fighting between Kelsey and Meg that night.

Megan will reportedly testify at some point during the trial -- but it's unclear when she'll take the stand.

Demetrius "Lil Meech" Flenory Jr. -- the lead star in 50 Cent's hit 'BMF' series -- learned the hard way it's a bad idea to stash a gun in your carry-on luggage.

Lil Meech landed in a bit of hot water at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Tuesday ... after we're told authorities found him with a gun.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Hip Hop Lil Meech was at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport Tuesday when security discovered a firearm in his luggage. We're told deputies from the Broward Co. Sheriff's Office were called to the scene and arrested the actor.

As for the weapon, our sources say it was a Glock 19 9mm ... it wasn't loaded, but cops also found a 15-round magazine. Lil Meech did not have a carry permit.

Meech was transported and booked for introducing a firearm into the sterile area of the airport ... a felony. Apparently, the actor isn't alone in his mistake ... as we're told this was the 130th gun found at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood this year.

Tekashi 6ix9ine's getting 86'd from a boujee apartment complex ... and we're told it's because one of his armed guards allegedly got careless with a high-powered firearm.

Sources familiar tell TMZ ... when 6ix9ine heads to Miami, he usually crashes with Nelk Boys member SteveWillDoIt. We're told Steve's place -- part of SLS Lux Property -- put the hammer down on the rapper, banning him from their spaces.

According to a letter sent to Steve from attorneys for the condo association, obtained by TMZ, Tekashi's bodyguards showed up at the end of October, openly carrying assault weapons.

The letter says one of Tekashi's guards also "casually left his assault weapon unattended on his bag" and walked away from it briefly to talk with others.

The docs say the property association is "aware of the bounty placed on 6ix9ine's life" ... after getting out of prison "in exchange for information regarding others and the provocative antics of 6ix9ine," which the condo association thinks creates a dangerous situation for its residents, guests, employees and staff members.

It's unclear if there have been potentially dangerous incidents going down during his stays, but this clip obtained by TMZ shows someone with a gun waiting for him outside.

Sources tell us he's now on a banned list that includes a photo of Tekashi for apartment security to see. The attached message says, "If seen on property, do not check-in, do not approach and contact security immediately. "

Ben Simmons has found himself in the middle of Tory Lanez's high-profile assault case -- and now, the Nets superstar is defending himself after he was accused of messing around with Megan Thee Stallion.

On Monday, the defense gave their opening statement in Lanez's trial -- where he's accused of shooting Meg in L.A. in 2020 following an argument. While addressing the jurors, Tory's attorney suggested it could've been Meg's friend, Kelsey Harris, who fired the shots, after the women were feuding.

Enter Simmons.

The defense claims Meg had a history of hooking up with men Kelsey's been with ... and accused her of doing just that with the NBA star, which they say caused a huge argument between the women.

But 26-year-old Simmons was quick to shut it down ... posting a viral video on his Instagram story of Rick Ross yelling, "Accusations. These are false accusations," during a segment with Swerve in Our Glory when the Florida rapper visited AEW Dynamite.

Ben didn't name Meg, Tory, or Kelsey in the post, but, c'mon.

It's only day 1 of the trial, but it's evident the defense's strategy is to convince the jurors that it was Kelsey who fired the gun, not Tory.

Even though the trial just started, it's a critical piece of information. If the defense can create reasonable doubt that Kelsey, and not Tory, fired the shots ... he'll be found not guilty.

The court is finally hearing opening arguments in the Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion case  ... and both sides are laying out what happened the night Meg was allegedly shot in the foot by Tory.

Prosecutors kicked things off on Monday -- claiming that Tory fired 5 shots on the evening of July 12, 2020, striking Megan in both feet -- claiming Tory was set off after Megan insulted his skills by sarcastically calling him a "beautiful artist."

According to the prosecution, Tory's text messages after the fact admitting to being too drunk and apologizing profusely are pretty damning evidence.

You'll recall ... after leaving Kylie Jenner's pool party, Megan, Tory and Kelsey were said to have gotten into a black SUV with a man named Jauquan Smith, who prosecutors say drove Tory to the party and brought a 9mm handgun.

According to prosecutors, following Megan's alleged diss, Jauquan pulled the truck over and Megan and Kelsey got out of the car ... when Tory is said to have fired the gun at Megan, instructing her to "dance bitch."

As for Tory's side ... they claim the pair was at Kylie's home for a pool party when things went south and Meg was asked to leave. It appears the defense is trying to make the jury believe Tory was not the trigger man.

Tory's attorney, George Mgdesyan, also argued Tory's DNA wasn't on the gun and that he was wearing a swimsuit during the alleged incident, asking the jury, "Where did he pull the gun from?"

Video showing a deadly shoot-out between New Mexico State basketball player Mike Peake and a student from a rival school has been released ... and it's terrifying.

The surveillance footage, put out by New Mexico State Police on Tuesday, was captured on Nov. 19 on the University of New Mexico's main campus at around 3 AM.

According to cops, Peake -- a 21-year-old Aggies forward who was in town for NMSU's basketball game against UNM -- was "lured" to the area by a 17-year-old girl and several other male UNM students ... who were allegedly trying to beat him up over an incident that had happened at the UNM-NMSU football game in October.

The video, obtained by KOB 4, shows Peake initially had a gun pointed at him ... while another man ran in and hit him in the leg with a baseball bat.

As Peake turned to sprint away from his attackers, the clip shows he pulled out a firearm -- and began shooting. Cops say he and 19-year-old Brandon Travis traded gunfire ... before Travis was eventually struck and killed.

According to police, Peake was also hit by gunfire during the altercation. He's since undergone multiple surgeries, but is expected to recover.

NMSU announced earlier this week Peake -- who had started two Aggies games this season -- has been suspended from the school's basketball team indefinitely over the altercation.

Big break for Israel Adesanya ... TMZ Sports has learned the UFC star's brass knuckles case will be dismissed if he stays out of trouble for the foreseeable future.

According to a spokesperson for the Queens District Attorney's Office, Adesanya's case was called on Tuesday -- and he was issued an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal (ACD).

Per the spokesperson, that means if Adesanya keeps his nose clean for the next six months, he will no longer be facing criminal charges.

We broke the story, Adesanya was initially arrested back on Nov. 16 -- just four days after his loss to Alex Pereira -- after authorities say he went through security at JFK airport with metal knuckles.

He was ultimately issued a desk appearance ticket -- a written notice from a police officer -- and ordered to appear in court on Tuesday.

Adesanya's manager, Tim Simpson, told us at the time of the arrest that "Israel was handed a gift by a fan, which he put in his luggage. When flagged at the airport, Israel quickly disposed of the item, and cooperated with authorities."

Kim Kardashian just got some much-needed protection against a scary individual who not only showed up at her home multiple times ... but also claimed to be armed.

Kim's legal team was in court Monday when she was awarded a restraining order against Andre Persaud ... the ruling means Persaud is prohibited from contacting Kim and must stay at least 100 yards away from her. It'll last for the next 5 years.

According to legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Persaud showed up at her home at least 3 times back in August, she says she's never met the guy, and was worried he might escalate things to physical violence ... especially given the fact Persaud allegedly claimed to be armed.

If showing up at her home wasn't scary enough -- Persaud also allegedly posted about Kim on social media, and in one particular instance Kim says he, "claimed that I had been communicating with him telepathically."

The man charged for shooting Lady Gaga's dog walker last year just got a stiff punishment for the crime ... landing behind bars for decades.

James Howard Jackson was sentenced Monday to 21 years in prison in Los Angeles County -- this after accepting a plea deal from the District Attorney's Office. Jackson was one of five men hauled in by police and accused of carrying out the violent act in 2021.

A rep for the L.A. County D.A.'s office tells us Jackson pled no contest to a count of attempted murder and admitted the allegation of inflicting great bodily injury to a prior strike.

Prosecutors alleged Jackson was the one who actually fired the shot at Ryan Fischer that night in an attempt to steal Gaga's two French bulldogs.

Video obtained by TMZ showed the wild altercation -- the group literally rolled up and hopped out to attack Ryan, shooting him in the process.

Jackson was facing the most serious charges, attempted murder and 2 extra firearm counts, assault with a semiautomatic firearm and a felon carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle.

You'll recall ... he was actually temporarily released by mistake earlier this year after a clerical error by the Sheriff's Dept. Fischer told us at the time he was freaked out, and was calling on police to apprehend him swiftly.

In the end, they did ... and now, he's going away for a long time. It's unclear where things stand with the other four men connected to the case ... two others were also charged with attempted murder, while the final 2 were slapped with accessory charges, among others.

French Montana's late Coke Boys artist Chinx Drugz is still dropping new music 7 years after he was gunned down -- a fact his wife sees as a testament to the countless hours he spent recording.

Chinx's widow, Janelli Caceres-Pickens, and his former manager, Doug "Biggs" Ellison, painstakingly compiled verses, snippets and unfinished tracks to complete "CR6," his third posthumous project, and the sixth installment in the "Cocaine Riot" series.

TMZ Hip Hop spoke to Janelli about the release and she admitted it was exhausting, yet rewarding.

She also touched on the rash of rappers who've been killed at an even more alarming rate than when Chinx was murdered.

Janelli says she's been vocal about the recent string of tragedies -- such as PnB Rock and Takeoff both getting fatally shot in recent months -- and she insists it's misplaced to blame the pattern on hip hop culture.

Instead, she says it's criminals who are ruining the vibes ... although, she admits if she and Biggs weren't A&Ring "CR6," she'd be listening to R&B.

Nevertheless, Janelli is proud of the Chinx project, citing the song "Lonely" with Offset as one of her personal faves.

San Francisco is heading down a dangerous, slippery slope with its proposal to deploy robots that can use lethal force ... that's according to the President of the city's board of supervisors.

Shamann Walton joined us Friday on "TMZ Live," and ran down a list of ways he feels the armed police robots could backfire, and he says hacking is a huge concern.

In case you missed it, San Fran's board of supervisors approved the robots in an 8-3 vote ... with Shamann being one of the few opposing. After the approval, he said voting against the policy didn't make him anti-cop, just pro-people of color.

Critics are concerned innocent POC could be disproportionately harmed when these robots are deployed at city crime scenes.

To be clear, San Fran's not talking about "Robocop"-like androids -- they're talking about remote-controlled machines, similar to ones already used by bomb squads. The difference is these would be armed with bullets and explosives.

Shamann says the department's reasons for using robots just don't track for him, and he gives several examples where they wouldn't be practical.

Proponents say the robots could be valuable in mass shooter situations -- like Uvalde, TX, for instance -- but Shamman says he, and many parents, wouldn't be comfortable sending in a robot when kids could be hurt or killed.

Brian Robinson knows the perils of gun violence better than almost anyone, and he wants to put a spotlight on the senseless killing ... the Commanders star will rock a sweet pair of custom cleats, with a very important message, this week against the Giants.

The 23-year-old running back, who was shot multiple times in August, copped his new spikes for the NFL's "My Cause, My Cleats" -- an initiative where players bring awareness to organizations and nonprofits during Week 13.

TMZ Sports has learned Robinson reached out to artist Joe Castro to shine a light on the incident where he was shot twice during an attempted robbery.

A 17-year-old boy was arrested for his alleged role in the shooting.

Castro -- whose client list includes NFL stars like Jaire Alexander and DeSean Jackson -- tells us he and Robinson decided to go with a gun control theme.

The tan and orange Nike spikes feature two guns held up in the air with text reading "End Gun Violence".

Castro says it took 2 hours to design ... and he actually made two pairs. One for filming and one for the Commanders-Giants game.

Idaho authorities seem to be back to square one ... they just reversed a key finding in their investigation into the slaughter of four college students.

The Moscow Police Department released a "clarification" on Facebook Wednesday night, saying they are now UNSURE if the victims or the murder house were targeted by the killer or killers.

The statement read ... "We have spoken with the Latah County Prosecutor’s Office and identified this was a miscommunication. Detectives do not currently know if the residence or any occupants were specifically targeted but continue to investigate."

Latah County prosecutor Bill Thompson sparked confusion during a recent interview with NewsNation, stating the assailant/assailants were "specifically looking at this particular residence." He added the use of the term "targeted" was likely a mistake because it implied one or more of the victims were in the killer/killers' crosshairs.

Thompson's words muddled the message from Moscow Police Chief James Fry, who has been adamant since the beginning of the probe that it was a "targeted attack," but he never explained why. Police have not identified the suspect/suspects or released a motive. Few details about the crimes are publicly known.

Four University of Idaho students were discovered fatally stabbed inside an off-campus home on November 13. Investigators believe the murder weapon was a combat knife similar to the one used by the Rambo character in the '80s film, 'First Blood.' But, the weapon has not been found.

With the killer/killers at large and little if no answers from police ... many university students -- out of fear -- have opted to attend classes remotely.

Hot Boys rapper B.G. was centered in an internet hoax this week, and Gucci Mane took the bait -- but in doing so, he revealed the cards he's playing for the incarcerated Cash Money Records OG.

Gucci excitedly tweeted Tuesday ... posting a pic of B.G. with a $1 million offer to sign with his 1017 Records, highlighting the respect he had for the Louisiana-born rapper.

Once the purported video of B.G. was debunked -- it wasn't really him -- Gucci deleted the tweet ... seemingly crushing his hopes to boost his So Icy Boyz roster.

Gucci does have some open slots -- he recently dropped an up-and-coming rapper from the label in a 24-hour timespan -- but many signs point to B.G. returning to Cash Money if he stays in the rap game.

Cash Money boss Birdman has been teasing B.G.’s early release from his 14-year prison sentence for months … despite his 2021 conditional release being denied.

The Chopper City rapper is currently holed up in California’s FCI Herlong Detention Center with a current release date of April 7, 2024. He’s been incarcerated on a federal gun charge since 2012.