Crime & Arrests

Well, this is a first ... a rapper was arrested in Georgia for weaponizing banana pudding.

Seriously.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Young Dro was arrested on July 5 for allegedly throwing a plate of banana pudding at his girlfriend during an argument at their Atlanta-area home.

We're told the two had been arguing over money -- but things got heated and the food started flying ... with both sides launching whatever delicious items they could find at each other.

Cops were called to the scene -- and despite the fact his GF made it clear she didn't want to press charges, they arrested Dro anyway.

He's now facing 2 counts of misdemeanor battery/family violence.

He's still in jail too -- according to law enforcement sources -- because he's also being held on a child support contempt order. The legal docs say he owes almost $41k in back child support, and needs to pay $10k to be released from custody.

Our Young Dro sources say the child support case involves another baby mama -- not his current GF who he had the pudding spat with -- and the rapper claims he's all paid up ... so it's a clerical error.

Young Dro's best known for his 2006 track "Shoulder Lean" featuring T.I. ... and had another hit single in 2013 called "FDB."

'The Chi' star Sonja Sohn was arrested for cocaine possession ... TMZ has learned.

Sohn, who also starred in "The Wire," was arrested Sunday at 2 AM in North Carolina for cocaine possession, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

The paraphernalia charges are misdemeanors, but the cocaine charge is a felony.

Police tell us ... she was arrested and brought into the station at 2 AM and bailed out 6 minutes later.

She posted $1,500 bail and left the station.

She will be arraigned Tuesday.

Sonja played Detective Shakima Greggs on all 5 seasons of "The Wire." She plays Brandon's mom, Laverne, on "The Chi."

A$AP Rocky may actually be in even more peril as he lingers in a Swedish jail BECAUSE the U.S. government tried to help him.

The prosecutor has shown no sympathy for A$AP, despite the fact that the person he is accused of assaulting assaulted him first, and it's all on video. Nevertheless, sources connected with the case tell TMZ, the prosecutor has been immovable on the subject of release pending charges, despite the fact that the U.S. State Dept. and now the President of United States got involved.

As we reported, the State Dept. waged a full court press last Thursday, trying to get A$AP out of jail, to no avail. The prosecutor mistakenly played his hand Friday when he released a statement an indictment will be filed against Rocky. His office said it was a mistake to say that, but the intentions are clear.

Sources connected to the case actually think intervention by the State Dept. and the President -- who essentially said he would guarantee bail if they would release Rocky -- could actually BACKFIRE because they are trying to get in the prosecutor's business.

The Swedish Prime Minister as much as said so Saturday, after Trump got him on the horn and lobbied for A$AP's release, telling Trump about "the complete independence of the Swedish judicial system, prosecutors and courts." A spokesperson for the PM said, "He [the PM] underlined that in Sweden everyone is equal before the law and that the government cannot and will not attempt to influence the legal proceedings."

Translation ... butt out.

Soulja Boy is making some huge changes to his lifestyle following a stint in county jail ... and that means shrinking his social circle and shying away from social media.

Sources close to Soulja tell TMZ ... his three months in L.A. County Jail served as an eye-opener, and now that he's back home, he's cutting people off and cutting off his time on Twitter and Instagram.

The biggest change ... we're told Soulja kicked a bunch of people out of his crib in the San Fernando Valley, the same home that was burglarized when he was locked up.

TMZ broke the story ... crooks hit Soulja's home and made off with $500,000 in cash, jewelry and his iPhone -- which the alleged thieves used to go live on Soulja's IG account -- and when SB caught wind of the burglary in jail, he was convinced it was an inside job.

Soulja's inactivity on social media is also related to the burglary ... we're told he's still upset about it, and he just wants to keep to himself and stay away from the masses.

As we first reported ... Soulja was sprung from jail last Sunday, getting out 146 days early due to a combo of good behavior, time served and overcrowding. Back in April, SB was sentenced to 240 days and 265 days of community service for violating his probation.

Prosecutors have finally hit Darren McFadden with charges in his wild Whataburger case ... charging the ex-NFL star with 2 misdemeanors that carry jail time if he's convicted.

McFadden was arrested back on January 21 after cops say the 31-year-old was asleep at the wheel of his 2019 GMC Yukon in the drive-thru at a Whataburger in Texas.

Officials say during the incident, McFadden resisted officers ... and it all ended up with the ex-running back's driver's side and passenger windows being smashed in.

Now, TMZ Sports has learned prosecutors have finally hit Darren with charges for the altercation -- charging him with resisting arrest and DUI with a BAC of greater than or equal to .15.

Both counts are defined as Class A misdemeanors in Texas ... which means McFadden is facing up to 2 YEARS behind bars and $8,000 in fines if he's convicted.

McFadden is due in court in October to face the charges.

Darren was a superstar at Arkansas before the Oakland Raiders drafted him with the 4th overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

It was a shocking scene. An enormously popular Hong Kong actor who has a number of American movie credits -- is in the hospital after a man jumped onstage and stabbed him ... and the dramatic scene plays out on video.

Actor Simon Yam -- who appeared in 'Lara Croft: Tomb Raider' -- was onstage Saturday for the opening of a new store in the southern province of China. He was speaking to the crowd when a man walked onstage, pulled out a knife from his pocket and lunged at Yam with the weapon, stabbing him in the abdomen. The assailant then follows up by slashing Yam and then trying to stab him a second time.

Security intervened and subdued the assailant, who was taken into custody.

64-year-old Yam, who also appeared in 'The Cradle of Life' starring Angelina Jolie, "Election," "Exiled" and many other movies, is recovering from abdomen wounds and wounds on his arm from the slashes.

Well this is a twist ... Donald Trump just said he's personally guaranteeing bail for A$AP Rocky if Swedish authorities release him ... meaning the President would be on the hook if Rocky skips out.

It's a bizarre turn in the case. Trump just tweeted, "Just had a very good call with @SwedishPM Stefan Lofven who assured me that American citizen A$AP Rocky will be treated fairly. Likewise, I assured him that A$AP was not a flight risk and offered to personally vouch for his bail ..."

Trump didn't use the word, but it sounds like he's saying he's willing to become a guarantor on Rocky's bail application.

As we reported, a judge ruled Friday A$AP is a flight risk and therefore can't be let out of jail while the case grinds on.

So, he's now spoken to the Swedish Prime Minister who really promised nothing ... especially if he views what's going on as fair. As we reported, A$AP has been jailed for more than 2 weeks and not a single criminal charge has been filed against him. Prosecutors say they need another week to investigate -- even though any lawyer out of school for a year could process this one quickly, since there's video -- and they convinced a judge to hold Rocky in custody while they figure it out.

And, by the way, prosecutors blew it by sending out a press release saying they plan to indict him ... so why the charade of pretending the investigation is continuing? When we contacted them they told us they mistakenly put that info in the press release and then removed it. The mistake was clearly just that they played their hand.

The reality is this ... Trump and his State Dept. have already made a full court press to get Rocky out and it fell on deaf ears. Good that he's trying, but Swedish authorities up to this point have been immovable.

As we reported, Kanye called Trump Friday and made a plea for the President to get involved.

A$AP Rocky is going to be indicted ... that's what prosecutors just said in a press release -- so what makes this bizarre case even more bizarre and abusive, they say they want him to stay in jail because they still need to investigate to figure out what happened on the streets of Sweden. So, why the hell have they already decided to charge him if they haven't figured out the case?

It's the latest twist in an outrageous case. The judge will hear the matter in a couple of hours.

Prosecutors say A$AP and 2 others in his crew may face crimes of abuse, assault and attempted assault ... remember, the assault is against the Swedish guy who first assaulted A$AP and others.

Prosecutors say they need until next Thursday to figure out, which raises the question ... if they haven't figured it out, how have they already figured out they are going to indict him?

The statement comes on the heels of the Trump administration getting involved in helping free the rapper. TMZ broke the story ... Kim Kardashian and Kanye West lobbied the White House to get involved in the drama across the pond. It was actually Kanye who urged Kim to get on the horn and talk to President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner -- with whom Kim is very familiar with from her previous White House work.

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus also got involved ... calling out Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for not doing more and claiming the State Dept. wasn't moving fast enough.

As you know by now ... Rocky had been held behind bars for more than 2 weeks now as prosecutors determined if the rapper should be charged with aggravated assault.

We broke the story ... Rocky's troubles began almost immediately after video surfaced showing the rapper and his crew pummeling a guy in Sweden ... leaving him battered and bloodied. Police then began investigating after a report was filed.

But, a second video then surfaced showing the alleged victim harassing A$AP and hitting his bodyguard with a set of headphones. The rapper actually tried to be a peacemaker .. telling the guy, "We don't wanna fight y'all. We don't wanna go to jail."

As we first reported ... Rocky was held in a Swedish jail with shockingly inhumane conditions. Our sources had said an official from the U.S. Embassy in Sweden told A$AP Rocky's team that the person from the U.S. Consulate who visited Rocky in the jail reported back, "Walking into that place was like walking into a toilet."

R. Kelly is scared for his life behind bars ... fearing retaliation from fellow inmates who know he's accused of horrid sex crimes involving underage girls.

Kelly's attorney, Nicole Blank Becker, tells TMZ ... during a recent visit with the embattled singer in federal prison, he told her solitary helps because he believes his life would be in real danger in gen pop. Kelly feels way safer by himself.

As we reported ... Kelly is behind bars for the foreseeable future because the judge denied bond during Tuesday's hearing. Prosecutors say they have their hands on the alleged sex tapes at the center of the probe, which they claim show Kelly having sex with underage girls.

Although Kelly thinks he's better off in solitary, his attorney says it creates a problem because he has no one to lean on. He can't read or write, and that makes even the most mundane tasks super difficult, such as figuring out what's on the commissary list.

Kelly has access to a phone for a total of 15 minutes a month to speak with family and friends.  Prisoners in general pop have access to the phone all the time. There's also no access to TV or the internet.

The L.A. County Sheriff's Dept. is raiding a Hollywood Hills home in connection to a shooting involving an SUV registered to YG, which left one deputy shot and an innocent bystander dead.

Sheriff's sources say the house is leased by YG ... but he was not detained or arrested and was not present on the property during the raid. Deputies got a judge to sign a search warrant in connection with the incident involving a wild police chase earlier this month.

As TMZ reported, someone inside an SUV registered to YG fired shots from inside the vehicle, striking a deputy. A pedestrian was killed during the crossfire between deputies and the shooter. The incident occurred on July 3 in Compton.

Four men have been handcuffed at the scene and have been placed in patrol cars while deputies continue their search inside the house.

YG denied he was there at the time of the shooting, saying, "I was nowhere near the scene of this incident and had been in a recording studio all day in Hollywood. I was there until after midnight on the 4th of July and didn't learn of these events until after they happened."

President Trump is very much aware of A$AP Rocky's legal sitch in Sweden -- and he's got his team working to get him freed ... thanks in part to Kim K and Kanye West.

That's right ... we've learned Kim and Kanye lobbied The White House to jump in and get involved in the drama across the pond -- where A$AP's been behind bars for more than two weeks now as prosecutors determine if the rapper should be charged with aggravated assault.

Here's how it went down. We're told as soon as Kim and Kanye heard about A$AP's predicament earlier this month ... Kanye urged Kim to get on the horn and talk to Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner -- with whom Kim is very familiar from her previous White House work.

Our sources say Kim filled Jared in on what was happening, and Jared then took the info to Trump himself ... whom, we're told, acknowledged something seemed amiss.

In addition to Kim and Kanye, Kareem Lanier and Pastor Darrell Scott of the White House’s Urban Revitalization Coalition, also played a big role … helping to connect ASAP’s management directly with Kushner through a phone call.

We're told Trump told Kushner he believed A$AP was being held unfairly, and wanted to help. As we reported, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo got involved and unleashed a few deputies in an attempt to get some action. A State Dept. member was supposed to arrive in Sweden Thursday.  We're told the State Dept. is now actively working to get A$AP out of jail, thanks in large part to Kim's efforts.

However, some feel the State Dept. isn't moving fast enough. Members of the Congressional Black Caucus called Pompeo out for not doing more, though our sources say he's been working tirelessly. Fact is ... Swedish authorities have been unmoved so far ... and our sources say there's now real fear prosecutors might delay their decision beyond the 3 week mark and keep A$AP in custody.

Ted Cruz is earmarking the billions upon billions of dollars El Chapo's been ordered to fork over to the U.S. to secure the southern border, and he says President Trump's backing his plan.

Like the Prez, the Texas Senator's all about building the wall, and he tells TMZ the next step now that the Mexican drug lord has been sentenced to life in prison ... should be to use his $12.6 BILLION fortune to make it happen.

Cruz acknowledges El Chapo's drug money might be difficult to track down, but says there should be no debate over where the cash goes once it's seized.

Ted's been serious about this for a couple years now -- he introduced legislation known as the EL CHAPO Act in April 2017, but it died ... so he reintroduced it in January.

He believes it's still a perfectly fitting conclusion to the Mexican kingpin's case. Check out his reasoning ... to Cruz it's basically poetic justice.

Jenelle Evans' ex-husband has been busted again in North Carolina ... for violating his probation in a felony case.

Courtland Keith Rogers -- who was married to the former 'Teen Mom' star from 2012 to 2014 -- got arrested Wednesday in Leland and booked at the Brunswick County Jail for a felony probation violation. His bond is set at $10k.

It's unclear what Rogers did to violate his probation, but it seems it's connected to Rogers' arrest back in April 2018 on drug charges.

He was also arrested for allegedly assaulting a woman in August, 2018.

Jenelle doesn't have any kids with Rogers, and the couple was only married a couple months before they split in January 2013, only to reunite a few months later ... when both got arrested for heroin possession and domestic violence.

They officially divorced in June 2014.

As you know ... Jenelle's had her own share of legal troubles since then, and then some.

Kevin Spacey just won a huge victory, because the criminal case against him in Nantucket, Massachusetts has been dismissed.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the case was dropped "due to the unavailability of the complaining witness."

As we reported, the man, who was 18 at the time, claimed Spacey repeatedly groped him in a bar, took the 5th Amendment earlier this month while testifying about the incident. Defense lawyer Alan Jackson grilled him over his cellphone and whether he deleted texts that were exculpatory for Spacey. He then took the 5th.

The alleged victim had earlier dropped his civil case.

Sources tell us the dismissal was at the behest of prosecutors.

The alleged victim claimed that back in 2016, when he worked at the bar, Spacey plied him with alcohol and then repeatedly groped his genitals. He also claimed he texted his girlfriend while it was happening. Those texts were the subject of last week's cross examination ... Spacey's lawyer had information the alleged victim selectively deleted texts and, when pressed, he invoked the 5th.

The alleged victim's mother, former Boston TV anchor Heather Unruh, who came forward with the allegations against Spacey back in November 2017, told investigators she was the one who deleted texts related to her son's "frat boy activities."

R. Kelly was in court for his bond hearing, shackled at the ankles and wearing an orange jump suit ... and will remain behind bars for the time being.

Prosecutors argued against his release ... saying he's a danger to the community, especially to minor girls. They claim the risk of obstruction is real and ongoing, and also heightened by his fame and power. Prosecutors are also saying he has the "unique ability to influence and intimidate witnesses and victims, and that continues to this day."

They added an emphatic, "It's who the defendant is," after alleging that he's sexually assaulted the alleged victims hundreds of times.

Kelly ultimately pled not guilty and was denied bond.

The prosecution also argued there's no question R. Kelly is the person in the videos they've obtained -- which appears to be a reference to the alleged sex tapes at the center of the probe. They're claiming that electronic monitor and home confinement is not enough for Kelly ... going on to say he can "entice girls to his own doorstep."

Meanwhile, R. Kelly's lawyer, Steve Greenberg, fired back to defend his client, saying Kelly has already surrendered his passport, and noted the guy doesn't like to fly ... so he's not a flight risk. Greenberg also says that, to his knowledge, Kelly didn't miss any court dates in his 2008 trial. Speaking of that trial, Greenberg responded to allegations that the case was rigged, saying R. Kelly faced a jury of his peers, and not a bench trial.

R. Kelly's alleged sex slaves will be right behind the embattled singer Tuesday in federal court when he goes before a judge in his new sex crimes case, and they even plan to address the media.

Joycelyn Savage and Azriel Clary will present a united front during Kelly's bond hearing ... according to Gloria Schmidt, the attorney for the women.

After the hearing, we're told they, along with Schmidt, will hold a news conference to react to whatever happens inside the courtroom. As we've reported ... Kelly was arrested last week in Chicago on a new round of federal charges, including sex trafficking, obstruction of justice and racketeering.

Federal prosecutors in NY also want him there to face the 2nd federal indictment -- and they've made it clear to the court, they want Kelly held in custody through his trial.

Amid all the allegations they're Kelly's brainwashed sex slaves ... Joycelyn and Azriel continue to publicly support the singer -- just as they did back in February when they walked hand-in-hand into court. They sat in the first row, reserved for friends and family, during that bond hearing for his arrest on sexual abuse charges in Cook County.