Juice WRLD's movements have been under the microscope of federal agents since at least last month ... and TMZ has learned it started with another private jet search.
Juice's initial run-in with the feds went down on November 18 at LAX ... according to our law enforcement sources. The rapper and his entourage were boarding their flight bound for Sydney, Australia, when Customs Agents conducted the search.
We're told drug-sniffing dogs were all over Juice and co. and their luggage. It's unclear if agents found anything -- we do know the plane was eventually allowed to take off with Juice on board.
TMZ broke the story ... Homeland Security agents, operating under an FBI task force, searched Juice WRLD's private jet early Sunday morning when it landed at Chicago's Midway Airport.
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As we reported, cops confiscated 70 lbs. of marijuana and 3 handguns after searching the plane. We're told Juice suffered his seizure -- which turned out to be fatal -- as agents were conducting their search. Our sources say someone in his entourage told cops he had taken several "unknown pills."
As for why the feds were so keyed in to his late-night flight to Chi-Town? It's possible it had something to do with the intel they'd gathered during the LAX search. Additionally, we're told the pilot had reported Juice's bodyguards for having handguns -- a no-no if they're not packed properly, or if the bodyguard doesn't have a permit.
We've reached out to the FBI for more detail on last month's search, but so far ... radio silence.
Justin Hartley's estranged wife thinks the almighty dollar destroyed her marriage.
Sources connected with Chrishell Stause tell TMZ, the "Selling Sunset" star is privately calling BS on the date of separation Justin listed in his divorce filing. TMZ broke the story ... Justin claims in his docs he and Chrishell separated July 8, 2019. By contrast, she says they were together right up until the day he filed ... November 22, 2019.
We know the 2 were seen out in public together multiple times between July and November, so the early separation date is puzzling. We're told Chrishell doesn't think it's all that puzzling ... that the tea leaves point to some sort of deal Justin may have and she believes he just doesn't want her to get a piece.
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As we reported, both Justin and Chrishell acknowledge they were having problems, but she says they never called it quits until she learned from TMZ he filed to end the marriage.
And, as we reported, Chrishell's lawyer, Samantha Spector, is asking Justin to pay her client spousal support ... something he made clear he does not want to pay.
We're told Justin is making big bucks in the wake of his success on "This Is Us." Unclear how the spoils will be divided.
Model Danii Banks says she got a rude awakening when an alleged armed robber busted into her pad demanding money, while she stood startled ... and totally in the buff.
This surveillance shows the naked truth, according to Danii, who tells us she was asleep in her Chamblee, GA apartment last week when she heard a loud noise, prompting her dogs to bark like crazy. You can see in the footage ... the alleged robber was armed with a gun and demanding money.
Danii stumbled into the room, naked and seeming totally out of it.
Danii -- an IG model with more than 2.5 million followers -- says the crook made her open a safe, which she says was empty. Danii adds the man then pushed her onto the bed before he fled.
According to the Chamblee PD ... cops were dispatched to an armed robbery call to her apartment where cops say they found Danii hysterical and crying because she told them someone tried robbing her at gunpoint.
Cops say they observed a street-side door to her apartment was damaged from being forced open. Danii says she told cops the man was a light-skinned black male.
No arrests have been made, but cops have Danii's surveillance footage and are still investigating.
It would be historic ... but Charles Barkleysays Becky Hammon should NOT consider the NY Knicks head coaching job because it would set her up for failure!
Of course, the Knicks are in the market for a new head coach after firing David Fizdale last week -- and a lot of people are calling for James Dolan to make Becky the first female head coach in NBA history.
42-year-old Hammon has created a lot of buzz in the NBA coaching world -- she was a 6-time WNBA All-Star before becoming an assistant with Gregg Popovich's Spurs in 2014. Pop has praised her as a coaching star and it seems like it's only a matter of time before she takes a head coaching job.
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There are rumblings Hammon is interested in the Knicks job ... but Barkley is warning her to stay FAR AWAY from the dumpster fire that's the Knicks.
"Somebody's gonna give her a chance," Barkley tells TMZ Sports ... "I don't think she should take THAT job. Don't take a bad job!"
As we previously reported, people are pretty upset with the Knicks for axing Fizdale -- with Michael Rapaport calling for a celebrity boycott of the organization.
Long story short ... Rap says Knicks owner James Dolan has ran the organization into the ground and he feels like a celebrity boycott is the only way to show Dolan the fans won't stand for it anymore.
Barkley says he ain't with the boycott but understands Rap's frustrations.
Swedish-born Ann-Margret (real name Ann-Margret Olsson) shot to stardom in her early 20s after landing the role of the kissable Kim McAfee and delivers the pouty and iconic farewell song in the 1963 film adaptation of "Bye Bye Birdie."
Ann-Margaret was cast alongside other stars including Dick Van Dyke as the songwriting scientist, Albert Peterson, Jesse Pearson as the puckered-up pop star, Conrad Birdie ... and of course Bobby Rydell as the jealous hometown boyfriend and aggressor, Hugo Peabody.
The following year Ann-Margret was cast as the hip-swinging, hair-flipping Rusty Martin in the 1964 Elvis Presley masterpiece, "Viva Las Vegas."
Steve Harveyand the Miss Universe crew might be trying to dodge blame for the Best Costume blunder, but Miss Malaysia's team is here to put it right back in their corner.
Elaine Daly -- the National Director of the Miss Malaysia org -- tells TMZ that their pageant title holder, Shweta Sekhon, and the rest of her team at MU Sunday night legitimately thought she'd won Best National Costume ... because we're told that's what they were led to believe by show runners, who allegedly never informed them of anything different.
Daly says Shweta was asked to go backstage and change into her National Costume to be showcased as "Best National Costume," which Steve was about to announce.
That's exactly what she did, and we're told Shweta even conducted interviews on the matter -- all under the assumption she was the actual winner. So when SH said Miss Phillipines had actually won, Daly says it's completely understandable why Shweta corrected him.
Fast-forward to Monday ... when we were told by a Miss Universe source that Steve hadn't actually screwed up -- Miss Philippines was the winner, and Shweta simply jumped the gun by assuming just because she was standing out there, she was the victor.
Well, Miss Malaysia's camp is calling BS on that. Daly says she tried clarifying the mix-up and got told by someone at Miss Universe that Shweta was just the production staff's choice for Best Costume -- Miss Phillippines won actual online voting -- but the Miss Universe people simply wanted to showcase her at the moment, 'cause they liked her outfit.
Frankly, that makes no sense. Obviously, one would naturally put two and two together and assume the girl on stage was the one Steve was talking about ... which is what Daly explained to us as well, as that's how it came off to them (and the rest of the world).
Adding insult to injury ... we're told the Miss Malaysia team is pretty devastated by the faux pas, as they say they've never won a thing at Miss Universe. Get it together, y'all.
7:28 PM PT -- The Patriots have issued a statement admitting their crew violated NFL policy by "filming the field and sideline from the press box" ... but insist it was an honest mistake.
The team claims the footage was ONLY supposed to be used for the "Do Your Job" behind the scenes production -- claiming, "There was no intention of using the footage for any other purpose."
The Patriots also admit they did not inform the league about plans to shoot the episode -- calling it an "unintended oversight."
"When questioned, the crew immediately turned over all footage to the league and cooperated fully," the team says.
Even though the Patriots insist the production crew is "independent of our football operation" the team says it accepts "full responsibility for the actions of our production crew at the Browns vs. Bengals game."
And, now we wait to see if/how the NFL punishes the Pats for this ...
3:31 PM PT -- Bill Belichick is speaking out about the allegations ... saying his staff has ZERO involvement with the videographer being at the game.
"I heard about this and evidently this is our production people on the TV show that were there and I have absolutely nothing to do, we have absolutely nothing to do with anything that they produce or direct or shoot," BB said on WEEI.
"I have never even seen any of their tapes or anything else. This is something that we 100 percent have zero involvement with."
"This is something you'd have to talk to the production people about and what they were doing, or whatever it was. We have never seen anything that they've shot, other than what has come down on TV."
The NFL has launched an investigation into the New England Patriotsover allegations a team staffer illegally recorded the Cincinnati Bengals sidelines during Sunday's game.
Of course, the Patriots were at home playing the Chiefs on Sunday -- but the team claims they sent a video crew to FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland to shoot a behind-the-scenes segment on a team scout during the Browns vs. the Bengals game.
FYI, the Patriots are playing the Bengals next week ... which is why the scout was there in the first place.
But, a Bengals team official believes there may have something fishy going on -- and reported a possible incident to the NFL, which is now investigating.
ESPN's Adam Schefter says the Patriots were credentialed by the Browns (the home team) to shoot that day for a segment called "Do Your Job" which spotlights key Patriots staffers behind the scenes.
Schefter says a team official for the Bengals saw the videographer -- who was wearing a Pats shirt -- and reported it to the league.
The NFL confiscated the video, according to Schefter and they're currently reviewing the footage to see if there was an attempt to spy.
Earlier today, a reporter asked Bengals head coach Zac Taylor about the incident -- and while he didn't say much, Taylor confirmed a league probe into the matter.
"I'm aware that there was an incident but the league is investigating it, so I've got no comment," Taylor explained.
The Patriots, for their part, tell Schefter there was nothing scandalous about the incident -- suggesting it was just a misunderstanding.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport says the Patriots got pre-game permission from the Browns to shoot but they didn't inform the NFL until after the segment was in the can. That could be why the Bengals weren't in the loop and may have suspected other intentions.
Of course, the Patriots have gotten in HUGE trouble in the past for videotaping another NFL team -- remember SpyGate?
That took place in 2007 when the Patriots illegally recorded NY Jets defensive coaches during a Sept. 2007 game.
Bill Belichick was fined $500k, the Pats were fined $250k and the team was docked a 1st round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.
Juice WRLD might've made a fatal decision as law enforcement searched his private jet -- swallowing a bunch of painkillers in an attempt to hide them from the feds.
Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the pilot who was flying Juice's private plane alerted authorities on the ground that the rapper's entourage had guns on them -- a big no-no in air travel. When they landed, FBI and FAA agents were waiting for Juice and company.
We're told at some point between the plane landing and the feds conducting their search ... Juice was seen swallowing several Percocet pills in what people believed was an attempt to hide them. Our sources say the pills might've contributed to his death in a possible OD.
An autopsy was performed on the rapper Monday, but additional testing, including toxicology, cardiac pathology and neuropathology is still needed before determining an official cause.
BTW, we've also learned that paramedics spent 40 minutes treating Juice, primarily trying to get his heart to beat regularly. They eventually transported him, at 2:55 AM, to the hospital. They arrived at 3:06 AM and doctors at the hospital pronounced him dead.
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FWIW ... we're told the 3 guns seized were all registered. As we reported, the feds also seized 70 lbs. of weed ... allegedly found in multiple vacuum-sealed bags inside luggage from the private jet.
Two of Juice's associates were arrested for gun possession. Both men are already out of jail.
Cassie and her husband, Alex Fine, have welcomed their baby girl to the world ... and the little one boasts one of the coolest names ever.
Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... Cassie gave birth Friday at an L.A. County hospital, and the couple named their first child Frankie -- Frankie Fine.
We're told their bundle of joy weighed in at 8 lbs., 4 oz and measured a smidge over 21 inches long.
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As we've reported, Diddy's ex and Alex announced they were expecting in June, got engaged a couple months later ... then got hitched in Malibu in September.
If you recall ... there was some drama when the 2 began dating last year, because Alex was her former trainer. Any potential bad blood was washed away by the time they revealed their pregnancy news, though ... Diddy gave them a shout-out, wishing them nothing but love and happiness.
The well-wishes seem to be working. Congrats to Cassie, Alex and, of course, Frankie!!!
"I think I ate everything ... EVERYTHING ... that's why I gained so much weight."
That's Andy Ruizkeeping it all the way real about his loss to Anthony Joshua -- admitting to TMZ Sports he just let himself go leading up to the rematch.
"I was having too much fun, I was celebrating too much," the former heavyweight champ told us at LAX.
Ruiz says his partying was also out of control leading to the Dec. 7 fight in Saudi Arabia -- "Just being with my friends and just celebrating. Drinking a few more Coronas than I should have."
FYI, Ruiz weighed in at 284 lbs for the rematch -- 15 pounds heavier than his weight for the June 1 fight, when he shocked the world with a 7th round TKO over the British superstar.
Still, Andy tells us he was impressed with his performance despite being out of championship shape.
"Even out of shape, even the way that I was training back and forth (between Mexico and California) ... f**king, I did pretty good, dude! I did pretty good! But, I wish I had taken it more serious."
Ruiz lost via unanimous decision -- and even though he suffered a gnarly cut over his eye in the fight, he's in pretty good spirits. He also showed us the cut and it's already all stitched up.
Now, Ruiz says he plans to take some time off and hang with his family before trying to lock down a 3rd fight with Joshua ... a fight Andy says he'll PROPERLY train for.
"For the 3rd fight, I'm gonna give it all I got! I want those belts back!"
Santa Claus doing lines of coke on your holiday sweater is NOT what Walmart's all about -- according to the big-box store, which is blaming Canada ... for the fashion blunder.
A sweater depicting a crazed Claus gripping a straw, getting ready to dive into 3 lines of cocaine was being peddled on Walmart's website. Once pissed-off shoppers pointed out the clear drug references ... the company pulled it from its online shelves and issued a mea culpa.
The excuse ... Walmart says the sweater was being sold in Canada by a third-party, adding the garment's message doesn't reflect their values. In other words, this one slipped through the cracks, and let's just blame the Great White North!
What Walmart can't explain away is the product description was reportedly pretty explicit: "The best snow comes straight from South America." And, if that's not enough, how about this phrasing -- "Santa really likes to savor the moment when he gets his hands on some quality, grade-A, Colombian snow."
Inappropriate? Yes. Kinda freakin' hilarious? Also yes. But, available at Walmart? That's a negative, Blow Snow Rider.
Ex-Boston College baseball player Pete Frates -- the man who inspired millions of people to participate in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge -- has passed away at 34 years old, the school announced Monday.
Frates -- who served as team captain in 2007 -- was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease in 2012 ... and 2 years later, became the face of the worldwide campaign that raised more than $220 million for ALS research.
Frates didn't create the Challenge but was one of the first to do it -- and he's credited with being one of the most important factors in the Challenge going mainstream.
Huge names from Bill Gates to Lady Gaga to Alex Rodriguez participated in the fundraiser, which required people to dump freezing-cold buckets of water on their heads.
"Pete was an inspiration to so many people around the world who drew strength from his courage and resiliency," his family said in a statement.
"A natural born leader and the ultimate teammate, Pete was a role model for all, especially young athletes, who looked up to him for his bravery and unwavering positive spirit in the face of adversity."
"He was a noble fighter who inspired us all to use our talents and strengths in the service of others."
Frates had a successful career as an outfielder for the Eagles -- he had 11 home runs and set a modern BC record with 8 RBI in one game.
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He went on to become the team's director of baseball operations in 2012.
"The Frates family wishes to express its sincere gratitude for the abundant love, kindness, and support we have been the recipients of during the past eight years."
The private jet Juice WRLD flew on to Chicago was loaded down with 70 pounds of marijuana ... and cops say people on the plane told them the rapper had popped several pills prior to suffering seizures.
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Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the FBI confiscated the huge stash of weed from several suitcases that were on board the flight. We obtained this photo of the marijuana and luggage in the private jet terminal at Midway.
According to law enforcement, several members of Juice's team aboard the flight -- which landed around 1 AM Sunday -- told them Juice had taken "several unknown pills" prior to the seizures which led to him getting rushed to a hospital.
Further, we're told one of Juice's associates told authorities the 21-year-old rapper has a Percocet problem. Our law enforcement sources also say a bottle of codeine cough syrup was found on the plane.
Juice has admitted abusing lean, or codeine cough syrup, in the past -- and taking prescription pills like Percocet. His cause of death hasn't been determined ... the Cook County Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy on Monday.
Two men -- Chris Long and Henry Dean -- were arrested for possession of handguns. We're told cops recovered 3 guns in total. Dean was released without bail, and Long is out after posting a $1,500 bond.
10:55 AM PT -- Cops tell TMZ Sports no arrests were made in the incident ... a Foxborough PD spokesperson says officers were dispatched to the area, but the combatants had cleared the scene before law enforcement arrived.
First they boo'd the team ... then Pats fans FOUGHT EACH OTHER after Tom Brady's squad lost to the Chiefs -- and it's all on video.
It was peak embarrassment at Gillette Stadium where even the TV announcers calling the game clowned Pats fans for having the audacity to BOO while the team was down at halftime.
But, it got even worse AFTER the game, when a couple of Pats fans in the disappointed crowd turned on each other and began throwing punches right in the stands.
At one point, one of the combatants took TWO left-handed bombs to the face ... and you can hear in the audio, people were pretty disgusted by the scrap.
Unclear how the issues were resolved ... we're still waiting to hear back from the Foxborough Police Dept.
As for the Pats on the field ... it's understandable why some fans are going crazy after their games these days -- Brady and the guys look NOTHING like future Super Bowl champs.
Still, 10 Super Bowl appearances in 20 years with 6 NFL titles ... oh, and they're 10-3 this season, heading to the playoffs AGAIN! Calm down, Beantown!!!!!
Meanwhile, Tom's already claimed the team is focusing on next week's game against Cincinnati ... so, sorry, Andy Dalton.
The "wife" in the derided Peloton ad is taking the mockery in stride, and unlike the "husband" in the spot ... she says everyone's been cool to her about it, and she considers all the hubbub to be a positive thing.
The actress, Monica Ruiz, was out walking her dog Sunday when she was asked about all the backlash to the commercial ... and she pretty much laughed it off like it's no big deal.
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Monica says everyone's been really nice to her since the ad started getting roasted online -- along with being labeled sexist -- and contrary to popular belief ... she feels really lucky to have been part of it.
She also says she saw the jabs "Saturday Night Live" took at the ad over the weekend ... and she thought it was all hilarious.
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It's interesting, because the actor who plays the Peloton hubby, Sean Hunter, seems to be having the opposite experience of Monica's. He said he doesn't find the situation -- or the 'SNL' jokes --- to be all that humorous, because he's getting flooded with hate mail while the world laughs.
Of course, Sean wasn't recruited to be in an ad for Ryan Reynold's Aviation Gin to help make light of the controversy like Monica was ... so he kinda got the shaft there.
It doesn't seem to be sour grapes, though ... because Hunter told us he's proud of Monica for making the most of the situation. She's clearly leaning into all the buzz.
The relationship between Chris Cornell's widow and his former band is in black days, to say the least ... because she's suing over money and the rights to 7 unreleased recordings.
Vicky Cornell filed legal docs, claiming the remaining members of Soundgarden are withholding hundreds of thousands of dollars in royalties owed to her and Chris' minor children.
She calls the move an "unlawful attempt to strong-arm Chris' Estate into turning over certain audio recordings created by Chris before he passed away."
The rights to those recordings -- some of Chris' final ones -- are the crux of the dispute between Vicky and the band. According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, she says the 7 tracks were "solely authored by Chris; contain Chris' own vocal tracks; and were bequeathed to Chris' Estate" for the benefit of her and their kids.
Vicky claims she's offered to share the recordings with Soundgarden, so they can be released in a way that respects Chris' wishes -- including having his producer involved -- but she says the band refused.
She also accuses lead guitarist Kim Thayil of putting her family in harm's way by suggesting she's the main obstacle to Soundgarden putting out another album.
In the docs, filed by powerhouse attorneys Marty Singer and James Sammataro, Vicky says those comments are intentionally misleading to Soundgarden's "loyal, rabid fan base" ... and she believes Thayil knows Chris worked on the music solo.
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However, Soundgarden is claiming Chris and the other members had been "working on the files in a collaborative effort." In a letter to Vicky, they say ... "The entire band was feeling very positive about their rekindled artistic energy and creativity" before Cornell died.
It also lists various members as co-songwriters along with Chris on 5 of the 7 disputed recordings.
Vicky's not buying it, and wants the judge to declare Chris' estate the sole owner of the unreleased tracks ... and force the band to fork over the alleged unpaid royalties.
We've reached out to Soundgarden ... no word back yet.
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