Weapons & Guns

Cam'ron is telling Ja Morant he's seen hoop dreams deflate ... and doesn't want the embattled NBA superstar to flush his career for being too in love with the streets.

The Diplomats founder was once a top basketball prospect coming outta Harlem in the mid-1990s ... but didn't take his academics seriously and saw his career fizzle after tearing his hamstring at junior college in Texas.

Cam'ron shared pics of his basketball playing days throwing up a gang sign to show Ja how unfocused he was at the time, where he says he got kicked outta college for pistol-whipping someone.

The "Oh Boy" rapper says he's not glorifying his past actions and doesn't want Ja, who's currently awaiting NBA Commissioner Adam Silver's judgment after his latest gun-toting video, to make the same mistake.

Ja should probably listen to Cam, as he's had his own run-ins with NBA Commissioners in the past.

The two females caught on video using a stun gun to jack a cart full of stuff from a Marshalls are finally in jail -- this after cops say they were led on a wild police pursuit.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the girls -- who were seen on video deploying a stun gun to rob a Studio City Marshalls last week -- were arrested Sunday and taken into custody ... but not before they led police on an insane chase through the South Bay.

We're told the young ladies have allegedly hit other Marshalls stores in L.A. County -- however, cops say it appears they only used the stun gun in that one instance Wednesday.

As for how they were eventually caught, welp ... it sounds like something out of a movie. Hawthorne PD says a call came in for a robbery yesterday at a clothing retail store ... and that witnesses saw the 3 women fleeing in a white Audi sedan.

HPD says a responding officer saw the vehicle on the road and attempted to initiate a stop -- but they say the car failed to yield and then turned into a dead-end alley ... only to turn around and drive straight forward toward the officer who was in hot pursuit.

Police say the Audi slammed into the cop car, and continued to drive away ... leaving the cruiser seriously damaged. As the Audi continued to drive, law enforcement claims it hit 2 other vehicles on the road before officers were finally able to get them in cuffs.

Cops say the suspects are all minors -- aged 13, 16 and 17 -- and that they were treated at a local hospital before being hauled off to jail. BTW, we're told three of these girls are the same ones involved in the Studio City incident, and that only 2 of them were seen in our video from last week.

The heated dispute between former NFL star Earl Thomas and his ex-wife three years ago did, indeed, involve a gun and a knife ... and the situation was terrifying -- new police video shows.

In the footage, obtained this week by TMZ Sports, you can see as cops responded to a disturbance at an Airbnb in Austin, Texas back on April 13, 2020 ... Thomas and his former partner, Nina Thomas, were arguing in a parking lot with weapons in their hand.

In Nina's grasp was a blade -- while in Earl's was a pistol ... and you can hear in the video, cops were desperate to get them to drop both when they arrived on the scene.

"Drop it now!" one officer said on the video while pointing his firearm at the couple. "Drop it!"

The footage shows both Thomases put their weapons down ... and then they both lay face-first on the asphalt.

Cops then slowly approached the two with their guns drawn -- imploring them to stay down.

"This is my wife," the former Baltimore Ravens safety can be heard saying in the clip. "She caught me cheating."

Added Nina, "I caught my husband cheating, officers."

"Whatever you do," one of the cops responded, "don't reach for that knife."

After a few tense moments, Nina was placed in cuffs without issue and taken to a different part of the parking lot for questioning. Earl, who was shirtless, was also put into custody without issue and moved away from Nina in the lot as well.

During ensuing questioning, Nina can be heard in the body camera video saying she and her sister-in-law had gone to the Airbnb earlier in the evening in order to confront Earl and his brother about cheating on them at the residence with other women.

"So," she said during the interview, "my husband has been leaving -- we've been having problems. He's been leaving off and on all weekend. And he said he was hanging with some buddies. And I didn't believe that, because we've had issues in the past. So I hacked his Snapchat and found his location here."

"I was calling, I was texting," she continued. "And I didn't know which room it was, and then from pictures, I recognized the lights inside. And I just so happened to turn the handle and the door was open."

Nina -- who had a cut on her hand -- also told the officers that she had brought Earl's gun to the location in order to scare him. She insisted it was not loaded while adding that she had grabbed the knife from the Airbnb during the dispute.

She said she and Earl had been involved in pushing and shoving during the altercation -- and told the cop, "My brother-in-law did get physical with my sister-in-law."

"I don't know exactly what happened because I was dealing with my own husband."

According to police documents, Nina also told cops at the scene that after she and her sister-in-law found Earl and his brother "naked in bed with other women," she pointed the gun at Earl's head, stating "that she took out the magazine thinking that the gun could not fire." But, cops said in the docs Nina was "unaware that the gun had a round in the chamber."

In the docs, officers said Earl was able to wrestle the gun away from her ... and eventually, the argument spilled out into the parking lot -- where cops intercepted them.

Nina was ultimately arrested and booked for burglary of a residence with intent to commit aggravated assault with a deadly weapon -- family violence. Earl was not arrested.

The former Seattle Seahawks star -- a Super Bowl champion and three-time All-Pro -- downplayed everything in a video in the days following the incident, saying, "Stuff like this happens." The two -- who were married in 2016 -- then continued to work on their relationship for several months ... before Nina filed for divorce from him later in 2020.

Notorious domestic terrorist Ted Kaczynski, best known as the Unabomber, is dead ... according to prison officials.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons says Kaczynski was found dead Saturday morning in his cell at FMC Butner in North Carolina. So far, officials aren't saying anything about the cause of death.

Kaczynski had served most of his life sentence at Colorado supermax prison since his 1998 conviction. He was transferred to NC in 2021, so he could get better medical treatment.

ABC News first reported his death.

The Unabomber evaded law enforcement for almost 20 years, while pulling off a string of bombings, several of them deadly. For the longest time, the only image the public had of him was an FBI sketch.

Authorities finally figured out who he was when his infamous manifesto, "Industrial Society and Its Future" ... was published in 1995 in the Washington Post. Kaczynski's brother recognized the writing and went to cops.

The FBI tracked him down and arrested him the following year at a remote cabin in Montana.

Kaczynski eventually pleaded guilty to setting 16 explosions that killed 3 people and injured 23 others between 1978 and 1995.

He was 81.

YFN Lucci is rejecting a plea deal Georgia prosecutors offered him in his racketeering case ... we've learned Lucci's instead opting to go to trial to clear his name.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ Hop Hop, Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis recommended a 20-year sentence, 17 of them in prison ... and in exchange, Lucci would have to plead guilty to multiple charges -- including felony murder, racketeering, aggravated assault and violation of the street gang terrorism and prevention act.

Lucci, whose real name is Rayshawn Bennett, is not interested in the offer. His attorneys, Drew Findling and Gabe Banks, tell us the plea offer is "absurd," and they strongly hinted the D.A. is intentionally dragging her feet -- they point out Lucci is still waiting to go to trial after 2.5 years in custody.

The attorneys also slammed Willis for focusing instead on "newer, high-profile cases that have completely monopolized the Court’s resources" and pointed out her "utter inability to prosecute complex cases."

They went on to say ... "Despite the obstacles consistently placed in the way of Mr. Bennett’s constitutional right to a speedy and fair trial, we continue to be ready and prepared to defend these false allegations."

Drake is back in his dancehall bag ... thanks to a new collab with British Afroswing trailblazer J Hus that sounds primed for summer spins!!!

Both artists have been teasing fans something was brewing all week and unleashed the official audio for "Who Told You" on Thursday ... where they both harmonize over a tropical-tinged riddim and croon for women they desire.

The song is destined for J Hus' upcoming album "Don’t Say Militancy," whose album promo has been flooding the London streets ahead of his release date sometime this summer.

Drake and J Hus have a relationship even outside the studio ... Drizzy welcomed him onstage inside London's 02 Arena for the UK Assassination Vacation Tour back in 2019, following J Hus' release from prison for illegal knife possession.

Adam Silver is fully aware of the rumors surrounding whether Ja Morant was actually waving a toy gun during his second Instagram Live scandal ... but ultimately, the NBA commissioner says it might not make a difference when determining his impending punishment.

Silver spoke at length about Ja's situation in an interview on "The Dan Patrick Show" on Thursday ... and he said the crux of the issue is how the Memphis Grizzlies star's actions disregarded the importance of gun safety.

"It's interesting," Commish said Thursday. "The very issue for Ja, certainly in the first incident, was treating a gun as a toy. That's what we're talking about and that's what I think the danger is to society."

"Taking a gun, live streaming it without getting into gun issues in terms of the propriety of owning guns and the use of guns, I think everyone agrees that gun safety is critically important and that guns aren't toys."

He added ... "It's something that I'm thinking a lot about because, again, I'm not going to get into specifics about the investigation, but in fact, if you're live streaming something to the world that looks exactly like a gun and in a frankly reckless manner, should it matter whether or not it's a real gun?"

The claim gained traction after Claudia Jordan said on "The Breakfast Club" earlier this week that she heard from Ja's camp that the weapon shown in the video was actually fake.

Silver says the league will look into "whatever is presented to us" before concluding the investigation ... and will take past conduct and the circumstances of the situation into account.

Silver explained what's most important is getting Ja right as a human being ... with basketball taking a backseat for the time being.

Ja was suspended indefinitely from all Memphis Grizzlies activities shortly after the video went viral -- he later apologized for his actions, but did not say if the gun was real.

Adam DeVine has a horrifying story to tell about a poker party turning tragic in the Hollywood Hills -- a man was shot and killed, with Adam and his wife just across the street.

The "Pitch Perfect" star shared his experience during a live taping of the "This Is Important" podcast Wednesday night with his "Workaholics" costars Blake Anderson, Anders Holm, and Kyle Newacheck -- and it might not have been the best setting for such a serious tale.

Adam says he was chillin' on a balcony at home with his wife Chloe Bridges when the murder happened just across the way from him, leaving him in shock.

Adam says he called it, too -- believing some "dastardly s***" was happening at the boujee poker party. Of course, the podcast hosts and crowd still found the ordeal a little funny, with Blake punching up the story with sound effects. Actually, it seems like the crowd thought Adam was doing a bit.

He didn't get into specifics about the crime, but KTLA reported 39-year-old Emil Lahaziel was gunned down just after 2 AM Wednesday morning at a Hollywood Hills poker party.

It's unclear if Adam actually witnessed the shooting ... if he did, he left that part out.

Former NFL wideout Travis Rudolph is a free man once again ... a jury just found him not guilty on all counts in his murder case.

The scene inside the courtroom Wednesday as the jury read its verdict was emotional ... Rudolph was in tears -- as were his family members.

The 27-year-old, though, eventually cracked a huge smile and shared an embrace with his lawyer. Afterward, he and his attorney thanked the jurors, the judge, the court and all others involved in the case.

"It means everything, man," the former New York Giants receiver said to reporters. "I finally got my freedom back and I can get back to my life."

Added Rudolph's attorney added, "We knew he wasn't guilty. He's one of the nicest human beings you ever met whether he plays sports or not. This is an innocent man who did what he had to do."

Rudolph was initially hit with four charges -- including one count of first-degree murder with a firearm -- back in April 2021 ... after authorities alleged he opened fire on four people inside of a car in West Palm Beach, FL, killing one, following a dispute that Rudolph had had with a woman earlier.

Rudolph, however, had adamantly claimed he was only acting in self-defense.

"I knew all along," Rudolph said Wednesday outside of the courtroom, "I did what I had to do to protect me and my brother's life."

The case went to trial last week ... and the jurors reached their verdict Wednesday afternoon after only about four hours of deliberating.

Rudolph told reporters he now has plans to resume his football career ... saying he's open to competing in any league -- not just the NFL.

"I'm going to reach out to my agent," he said, "and if God's willing, I'll still be able to play football. Definitely planning on getting back to football."

Lil Tjay is in police custody once again ... his lawyer says the rapper got arrested in NYC -- second time this year -- and this time it all went down live on Instagram.

Tjay's lawyer Dawn Florio tells TMZ ... the rapper was filming a short clip for a music video when cops arrived on the scene in Manhattan, and took him in for reckless endangerment.

He captured his arrest on video, too, as he happened to be live streaming Tuesday during the ordeal. Some folks in the crowd told him to stop resisting as his phone ended up in someone else's hand.

TMZ broke the story, the 22-year-old was arrested in January after a traffic stop in the Bronx while en route to shoot a video with Ice Spice. Law enforcement sources told us cops found a handgun in his vehicle, resulting in him getting booked for weapon possession.

Of course, the guy's also lucky to be alive after getting shot 7 times in a 2022 New Jersey robbery.

We've reached out to the NYPD's press office for comment ... so far, no word back.

Young Thug’s biological brother, and YSL artist, Unfoonk is behind bars for violating the terms of the probation put in place after his plea deal in the Georgia RICO case.

The judge in Fulton County officially revoked Unfoonk’s probation Monday, and sentenced him to 9 years and 6 months in prison after he was charged with firearm possession by a convicted felon ... among other offenses.

Judge Ural D. Glanville scolded Unfoonk during the sentencing ... reminding the Atlanta rapper of their conversation in May about the strict conditions of his probation, especially when it came to possessing a gun!!!

Back in December, Unfoonk (born Quantavious Grier) took a plea deal in the ongoing YSL RICO trial, in which he got credit for 2 years time served, and was placed on probation for the next 10 years.

Ja Morant is doing "good" as his fate hangs in the balance after again flashing a gun on social media ... so says teammate Jaren Jackson Jr. who believes the Grizzlies superstar will come back with a vengeance!

"He's good," 23-year-old Jackson said Monday on Paul George's podcast.

"He's I think just growing up with this much attention on you, especially being this young. It's a lot to deal with."

Of course, Morant, outside a short, prepared statement, has been silent since the controversial video ... a moment Jaren clearly believes doesn't accurately portray the 23-year-old NBA superstar.

"Dude's great. People always gotta understand that everybody human. That's my brother though, no matter what. I stand my brother and I think that's the lesson everybody should take away from this."

Morant's going to be suspended -- the only question is for how long. After the Denver-area strip club incident, the NBA sat Ja down for eight games. The incoming punishment will presumably be much more severe.

But, Jackson -- who's played with Morant since 2019 -- wholeheartedly believes Ja will come back with a chip on his shoulder, and be better than ever.

"He works hard. He's smart as hell. He should've been MVP the other year," Jackson says, adding ... "The dude is high-level."

A brazen gunman is on the loose in NYC after going on a wild west style rampage through a restaurant, taking down one victim ... and it was all caught on security video.

The shocking footage starts out calmly with customers scanning food trays at a hot bar inside Boishakhi Restaurant Saturday afternoon in Queens.

Suddenly, the red-hoodie-wearing assailant dashes into the joint, brandishing a handgun and chasing after a man in a red shirt while firing shots at him.

The video, first obtained by the NY Post, shows others ducking for cover ... including a terrified family that scooped up their child and ran down a flight of stairs to protect themselves.

Meanwhile, the suspect continued to pursue the man, circling the hot bar and firing his handgun as he went. He eventually struck his target once ... in the butt, and then fled.

The victim was taken to a hospital, where he was listed in stable condition. No one else was injured.

By the time cops got on the scene, the shooter was long gone.

Keenan Anderson, cousin of BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors, died because of cocaine and an enlarged heart ... according to the coroner's office, which was investigating his death following a controversial LAPD arrest.

Body cam footage of Anderson's arrest sparked protests in L.A. earlier this year -- LAPD officers had used a taser on him for 42 seconds, according to Cullors. However, the L.A. County Coroner's autopsy report, released Friday, says Anderson's cause of death might have been the effects of cocaine use on his enlarged heart.

The report notes that a manner of death has not yet been determined.

The police video showed officers tasering Anderson -- who had been a high school English teach -- at least 6 times while he was on his stomach.

In response to Anderson's death, LAPD Chief Michael Moore said the department would be taking a closer look at taser deployment.

Ja Morant will have to wait at least a couple more days to learn his fate following his second gun video ... Adam Silver said Thursday the NBA will not announce anything regarding the Grizzlies superstar until after the Finals.

The commish spoke at length about Morant with reporters just before Game 1 of the Nuggets vs. Heat series ... and he made it clear, the league has basically wrapped its probe into the 23-year-old.

But, he said they don't want to announce any of their findings just yet ... out of respect for the Denver/Miami championship.

"We probably could have brought it to a head now," Silver said, "but we made the decision -- and I believe the Players Association agrees with us -- that it would be unfair to these players and to these teams in the middle of this series to announce the results of that investigation."

Silver added that because it's the offseason -- and Morant has already been suspended indefinitely by Memphis -- he didn't see any need expedite a ruling that could possibly overshadow the Finals.

"It seemed better to park that at the moment," he said.

Silver did not indicate whether or not Morant would be receiving a hefty suspension -- though he did say "the history of prior acts" and "the individual player's history" would factor into any sort of punishment.

Of course, Morant has already been suspended once for flashing a gun on camera back in March ... and many expect a more lengthy ban to be coming following his most recent gun incident.

"My sense now is that shortly after the conclusion of the Finals," Silver added, "we will announce the outcome of that investigation."

Memorial Day turned violent at a popular Florida tourist destination ... nine people were shot and injured, including four minors, in Hollywood Beach.

The bullets started flying Monday afternoon when two groups got into a heated argument and decided to settle their differences using guns.

Several videos circulating online caught all the chaos. One clip shows the moment shots were fired, causing people to scatter on the Hollywood Beach Broadwalk -- a busy promenade filled with restaurants and shops.

Other footage captured paramedics giving first aid to victims at the scene.

Police said five adults and four minors were treated at hospitals for gunshot wounds -- and one had to undergo surgery. Yet, all nine victims -- ranging in age from 1 to 65 -- were listed in stable condition.

Hollywood Police Department spokesperson Deanna Bettineschi said investigators detained one person of interest and were searching for a second possible suspect.