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The men already charged for the alleged murder of Ahmaud Arbery are now facing federal charges as well -- the U.S. Dept. of Justice just slapped them with hate crimes.

The U.S. DOJ announced Wednesday Travis and Gregory McMichael, as well as William "Roddie" Bryan, were indicted by a federal grand jury on multiple charges ... including interference with rights and attempted kidnapping.

The McMichaels face even more counts -- using, carrying and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Travis was also indicted for discharging the firearm ... a Remington shotgun, according to prosecutors.

As it relates to the kidnapping claims -- the feds allege all 3 men attempted to unlawfully seize and confine Ahmaud by chasing after him in their trucks. Prosecutors claim they did this in an attempt to restrain him, restrict his free movement, corral and detain him against his will ... all while Ahmaud was running down a public street in Brunswick, GA.

The feds say Gregory McMichael also brandished a .357 Magnum revolver during the chaos.

The indictment also notes the McMichaels and Bryan are currently facing murder charges at the state level ... which is a separate case from these federal charges.

Ahmaud's mother, Wanda Cooper, tells TMZ she's grateful for the federal charges ... especially since this wasn't even a possible outcome not too long ago in the state of Georgia. It's only because of a new law they passed there last year that this could become a reality.

Famous Dex stole an expensive timepiece, and then made up a story about getting robbed to cover his tracks ... at least that's the alleged watch owner's story.

The rapper is being sued by a man who claims Dex agreed to advertise the guy's luxury watch on social media -- but in a lawsuit he's filed, the guy says his first meeting with the rapper went south quickly.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, he handed over the timepiece so Dex could check it out and take pictures for social media posts. He says it was all good until Dex drove off with it and went radio silent.

In the suit, he claims Famous Dex contacted him later, and claimed 4 men robbed him and took the watch. He's not buying that, and claims the robbery is BS -- he believes Dex still has the timepiece. According to the suit, he says he saw it on Dex's Instagram, and that Dex tried to sell it to a jeweler.

TMZ broke the story ... Dex even reported the alleged robbery to cops last month, telling them the crooks jacked a $50,000 watch and cash at gunpoint.

But, the plaintiff claims he was there when Dex talked to police, and somehow HE actually got handcuffed and detained for a while. He wasn't charged, but now he's suing Dex for at least $90,000 in damages.

W. Kamau Bell agrees it will take more than just new laws to change policing in America ... he says the system needs a full revamp, from top to bottom, starting with the job description and who's recruited.

The comedian and journalist broke down the term "defund the police" Wednesday on "TMZ Live" ... explaining it doesn't mean getting rid of police -- but, rather, retooling priorities and hiring people who have vested interests in their communities.

Watch how he describes what values a reimagined police officer would foster in his ideal world. It's basically the core principles you'd find today in most social workers and teachers. To him, those are the types of folks who should be in law enforcement.

In light of so many police-involved shootings in just the last 2 weeks -- even as Derek Chauvin stood trial -- Kamau tells us it's clear to him that there's just no "fixing" policing the way it's structured now ... it needs a full reboot.

He adds, the same old formula of pouring more money and power into police departments simply isn't working ... at least not in Kamau's eyes, anyway.

Kamala Harris is getting the Madame Tussauds treatment ... becoming the first Veep EVER to get immortalized by the famous wax museum.

Madame Tussauds New York on Wednesday released the work-in-progress clay head sculptures of President Biden and the VP. The resemblance is uncanny ... as MT's work usually is.

But, what's interesting here is Harris -- the first woman, Black and Asian-American VP -- becomes the first Vice President to whom Madame Tussauds' extends this honor.

It's a tradition for the wax museum to feature each U.S. president to get the honor. In fact, Madame Tussauds announced Biden would get his own figure following his Presidential win.

But, with the Biden-Harris administration inching close to their 100th day in office ... Madame Tussauds decided Harris would also be included ... with their clay heads created by a team of London-based studio artists. The meticulous work included the artists researching hundreds of pics to get as close to perfection.

Madame Tussauds says it took around 6 weeks to sculpt the figure and it'll take another 4 to 6 months to complete it. When it's done the final product will feature Biden and Harris wearing replica outfits from Inauguration Day.

Biden's outfit will feature a midnight blue Ralph Lauren suit and Harris will sport a purple coat, dress, gold and pearl necklace and pearl earrings.

Kodak Black just pled guilty to first-degree assault and battery in his sexual assault case in South Carolina, and he's been sentenced to 18 months probation ... TMZ has learned.

The rapper was originally indicted on a felony charge of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, but his attorneys, Bradford Cohen and Beattie Ashmore, tell us Kodak copped a plea to a lesser charge to put the case behind him.

As we reported, Kodak was charged for allegedly sexually assaulting a teenage girl back in February 2016 at a hotel. According to prosecutors, he pushed the girl into a wall and onto a bed before assaulting her, allegedly biting her breast and neck. Kodak had denied the allegations.

Ed Clements, the 12th Circuit Solicitor in Florence County, tells TMZ ... Kodak admitted in court he bit the girl, but apologized to her, on the record.

We're told Kodak was given a 10-year suspended prison sentence and placed on 18 months of supervised state probation.

While on probation, he will not wear an ankle monitor, but must let his probation officer know where he goes and where he lives.

Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka just launched her very own signature swimwear line ... and who better than Naomi Osaka to model the bikinis!!

The 23-year-old announced her collaboration with Frankies Bikinis on Wednesday ... adding to her long list of partnerships in the fashion industry.

The line is called the Frankies Bikinis x Naomi Osaka collection ... and features a number of one-piece and bikinis in fun colors ranging from $80 to $190.

FB founder Francesca Aiello spoke about the decision to work with the young star ... saying it was an easy choice.

"To state the obvious, Naomi is extremely creative and has an amazing sense of style that she has made her own," she told Nylon.

"Beyond her style, I also really respect her as a person. I admire the way she uses her platform to inspire, educate, and spread awareness about social happenings."

Aiello added ... "She represents a strong female who is living out her dream and inspiring others to follow theirs, and she is genuinely just an amazing person all around."

Aiello said Osaka was heavily involved in the design process ... and wanted to incorporate her own "sporty yet feminine style" on and off the court.

On top of the bikini line, Osaka has worked with big-name companies like Nike, ADEAM, Louis Vuitton and Levi's.

Naomi's friends have shown love following the big announcement ... including Venus Williams, who said, "Did it on em! ❤🔥"

Osaka's boyfriend, rapper Cordae, added "🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥"

The family's legal team is "deeply disappointed" by the judge's decision to keep the police footage from the public, saying ... "In this modern civil rights crisis where we see Black people killed by the police everywhere we look, video evidence is the key to discerning the truth and getting well-deserved justice for victims of senseless murders."

It adds ... "Just look at the murder of George Floyd – if the world had not seen that clear and disturbing footage, there might not have even been an ounce of accountability for those officers."

Brown's family lawyers vow to keep the pressure on until the body cam videos are made public and they "get to the truth."

All police body cam videos of Andrew Brown Jr.'s fatal encounter with cops in North Carolina will be viewed, but only by his family and not the media ... a judge just ruled.

The Pasquotank County judge just made the highly-anticipated and controversial decision after hearing arguments for the release of police video in the case of Brown's killing ... in which an autopsy revealed he was shot 5 times.

The judge ruled the footage should be available to the family within 10 days, but also ordered that the faces of any deputies and other identifying information in the video be blurred. The judge will reevaluate making it available to more eyes in 30-45 days.

As we reported ... Brown's family says it was one bullet to the back of his head that killed him, and the findings of the private autopsy released Tuesday show he also suffered 4 gunshot wounds to his right arm.

Brown's family and their legal team have been calling for the release of the full police body cam footage from last week's fatal shooting, claiming he was gunned down in an "execution" while cops were trying to execute a search warrant.

So far, the family says they've only seen a "snippet" of police body cam ... just 20 seconds of one deputy's body cam with the faces blurred of other deputies on the scene.

The family claims what they did see only confirms their belief Brown was murdered by cops. Since his killing, peaceful protests and demonstrations in Elizabeth City have continued daily ... with the mayor there declaring a state of emergency.

Britney Spears has a lot on her mind that she wants to tell the judge in her conservatorship case, and the biggest thing she wants to get off her chest is her dad's involvement in her life ... sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ.

Our sources say ... Britney is all but at war with her dad, Jamie. She is angry at him and has virtually no interaction with him anymore. A lot of this stems from her days growing up when Jamie was not present in her life. Britney's boyfriend, Sam Asghari, clearly shares her sentiment ... he's been open about his disdain for Jamie and what Sam calls his heavy-handed tactics.

We're told Britney has talked about how she wants her dad out of the conservatorship. As we reported, Jamie is no longer Britney's personal conservator, and he's sharing responsibilities managing her business affairs with a financial institution. Right now the only recurring business issues involve licensing and merchandising, so there's not much to do.

Our sources say Britney hasn't been specific about what she wants to say to the judge, but it's more likely than not she wants Jamie out entirely.

As you know, Britney has said she will not perform again unless Jamie is out of the conservatorship entirely, but that doesn't mean if he's out she will then perform. Fact is ... we know she hasn't talked to anyone in her camp about a desire to go back on stage, and she even said as much in a recent social media post.

We're told Britney has not expressed a desire to end the conservatorship, but it's almost certain that issue will be addressed when she appears before the judge ... addressed either by Britney or the judge.

Caitlyn Jenner might not be the only celeb gunning to be the next governor of California, Randy Quaid wants to throw his hat in the ring too, and it sounds like it's all about vengeance.

The "Kingpin" star says he's "seriously considering" running, and already has his platform ... he says corruption is rampant among prosecutors in Cali and he wants to "clean up the District Attorney Offices throughout the state."

Randy's legal issues in California are well documented, so this sounds very personal.

As we reported ... Randy and his wife, Evi, are wanted in Santa Barbara for failing to show up for a court hearing in their 2010 felony burglary case. Remember, the Quaids were charged after they were found allegedly living in a home illegally.

Randy and Evi went to Canada after the felony arrest warrant was issued in Santa Barbara, but Canada didn't want them either, and in 2015 they were arrested in Vermont while allegedly trying to sneak back into the U.S.

California tried to extradite the couple back to the state from Vermont, but the process was denied.

The Santa Barbara District Attorney's Office tells us the case and the warrants for their arrests are still active, which raises a big issue for potential candidate Quaid: How the hell will he campaign for Governor in a state where he can be arrested the moment he steps foot in said state?

Joe Rogan's suggestion that young people don't need to get the vaccine isn't sitting well with Dr. Anthony Fauci, who says that's a totally selfish approach to battling a pandemic.

The Spotify podcaster got a lot of backlash this week for saying folks in their 20s aren't susceptible to serious illness if they get infected ... and adding that he'd tell them not to get vaccinated.

Fauci was on NBC Today and fired back at Rogan's remarks ... saying the guy is simply wrong. He notes that while, yes, younger people aren't as likely to get deathly ill from COVID ... that's not really the point.

He says those people can still contract it -- even without showing symptoms -- and give it to someone else, who might be more prone to getting sick ... and possibly even dying. So, in other words, Fauci says it's a me vs. the world mentality -- and a selfish notion to avoid getting vaccinated just because you think you're healthy and would be fine without it.

JR, meanwhile, doesn't seem to have been down with a lot of the COVID protocols that were rolled out over the last year, and has often questioned the legitimacy of CDC guidelines. He's also entertained conspiracy theories and speculation over COVID ... without any expertise on the matter.

One of the jurors on Derek Chauvin's trial says there was no pressure to reach a guilty verdict -- but does explain the most difficult part of the job ... seeing the videos on replay.

Brandon Mitchell -- Juror #52 on the case -- did an early blitz of interviews Wednesday morning ... sitting down with 'CBS This Morning' and 'Good Morning America.' He offered interesting insights on both, but told CBS what everyone's been wanting to know.

Gayle King asked Mitchell if he or his peers felt heat from the public to deliver guilty verdicts on all counts -- especially 2nd-degree murder, the heaviest of charges -- but he tells her straight up ... nope. He admits there was stress, but not the kind you might expect.

Watch for yourself ... sounds like the jurors stomachs turned every time they had to watch George Floyd die -- which happened countless times throughout the 3-week proceedings. You can also tell Mitchell took a lot of what was discussed at trial personally ... as he himself is a tall Black man, similar in stature to Floyd.

Robin Roberts asked another lingering question ... how were they able to reach consensus so quickly, and were there any holdouts??? Mitchell spilled on that as well -- and, surprisingly, he tells her there weren't any major hang-ups ... except on how to interpret the instructions.

Mitchell explains that once they went around the room and read the instructions back multiple times over ... the one juror who was hesitant finally came around, and the rest is history.

Shock G will be laid to rest not far from where he died ... his funeral plans are set, and we're told his group Digital Underground will be well represented at the service.

The late rapper's manager, Atron Gregory, tells TMZ ... Shock's funeral is scheduled for Saturday in Tampa and a large Digital Underground contingent will be front and center, including founding member Money B and DJ Fuze.

Money B's manager says ... MB's been working with Shock's family to help prep for the funeral, but it won't be a Digital Underground reunion. We're told members have seen each other recently and they regularly stay in touch.

As you know, Shock was famous for his work with Tupac Shakur, and a rep for the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation tells us Pac's stepbrother, Mopreme Shakur, will also attend the funeral, as well as rapper Ray Luv, a close friend of both Shock G and 2Pac.

As we first told you ... Shock G was found dead last week in a Tampa hotel room, and his father said there were no signs of trauma.

We've also learned new details surrounding Shock's death ... the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner tells us Shock was last seen the day before he died, when a hotel manager noticed him outside the building.

We're told the manager grew concerned when Shock missed his scheduled check-out time -- so he went to his room, opening the door to find Shock unresponsive laying in bed. The manager immediately called 911.

Evander is out, LENNOX IS IN!!

Mike Tyson tells TMZ Sports ... his next boxing opponent is all lined up and it's a rematch with former heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis!!

"I'm gonna fight Lennox Lewis," Tyson told us Tuesday night on the way out of Catch in L.A. ... "September."

YES!!!

Mike is 54 years old. Lennox is 55.

Remember, Tyson was in talks to rematch Evander Holyfield on May 29 in Miami but the deal fell apart in March because the two sides couldn't agree on money.

So, Tyson's camp continued the search for a big-name opponent -- and according to Mike, Lennox is in!

The two have fought before -- Lewis famously KO'd Tyson in the 8th round when they clashed in June 2002.

In the buildup to the fight, Tyson making some wild threats ... famously saying he wanted to "eat" Lennox's children!

We spoke with Lennox back in February about the possibility of fighting Tyson and he told us he was open to it ... but only "if the public wanted it."

Well, clearly enough people made it clear they'd love to see Lennox get back in the ring!

FYI, Lewis is one of the greatest heavyweight fighters ever -- he finished his pro career in 2003 with a 41-2-1 record ... defeating legends like Vitali Klitschko, Evander Holyfield, Shannon Briggs, Ray Mercer, Frank Bruno and, of course, Mike Tyson.

Tyson was 50-6 in his pro career -- but looked AWESOME in his exhibition fight against Roy Jones Jr. in Nov. 2020.

April the Giraffe is gone, but not forgotten at the park where she captivated millions -- not only is there a new statue of her, but April's ashes will also be spread around the memorial.

A rep for the Animal Adventure Park in upstate NY tells TMZ ... they're celebrating Opening Day Wednesday by unveiling bronze statues in memory of the giraffes that passed -- April and her youngest son, Azizi who was born in March 2019 but unexpectedly died last year.

We're told the bronze statues are displayed just off of the park's giraffe yard and feeding deck. And April's ashes are in the memorial too.

As we reported ... April died earlier this year after her arthritis became much too painful, prompting park officials to do the humane thing and euthanize her. She captivated the world in 2017 and racked up millions of YouTube views on the park's live stream as fans waited weeks for her to give birth.

Charli D'Amelio and Chase "Lil Huddy" Hudson have more than 100 million TikTok fans combined, and millions of them seem to believe they're dating again ... but they're sticking to the friendship story.

We got the teenage TikTok superstars out Tuesday night at Craig's, as they hit the WeHo hot spot with friends to celebrate the release of Lil Huddy's new single "America's Sweetheart" ... for which Charli co-stars in the music video.

Yeah, so that's how the romance rumors got sparked ... along with the fact the duo's actually dated in the past.

But, both Huddy and Charli shot down the dating speculation separately, with the singer saying they're "just friends" and Charli -- a bit more energetically -- saying they're just friends ... "really close" friends.

Take that for what it's worth, kiddos.

BTW, the release party for Lil Huddy's new single was swarming with other popular TikTokers ... including Addison Rae and Charli's older sister, Dixie.

Marty McFly may be a fictional character with a prop that serves as a cool hoverboard but soon your average (wealthy) Joe may have the chance to actually own one ... 'cause they're ready to hit the market this summer.

Alexandru Duru and Philippe Maalouf, co-founders of Omni Hoverboards, tell TMZ ... their company is very close to bringing a new hoverboard model to market.

That means ... the public will soon be able to buy a limited supply that will be made available summer or late 2021. But, hoverboard riders will have to plunk down a small fortune for the craft. We are told pricing is still a work in progress, but the 10-propellor model is expected to fetch around $36k.

We're told Omni wants to eventually sell an 8-propellor model that could retail for around $27k.

Hoverboards are all the rage right now. As we reported ... some dude was seen zipping through the streets over the weekend. And, for the record, that hoverboard does NOT belong to Omni. But, it sure created tons of buzz that the technology's there to make Michael J. Fox's dream a reality.

Truth is ... Omni's past models and most hoverboard competitors last about 1 to 3 minutes in the air, which is why most hoverboard clips on social media are short. The new model could stay airborne for 30 minutes.

Omni has been at it for some time now trying to get its hoverboards off the ground. In 2015, its mark-1 prototype earned a Guinness record by traveling a total distance of 905 feet.