Crime

Kendall Jenner's company and modeling agencies for Bella Hadid and Emily Ratajkowski could soon be slapped with subpoenas in a bankruptcy connected to the doomed Fyre Festival.

A judge gave the green light Monday for the companies repping the models to be subpoenaed ... potentially forcing them to fork over documents related to payments made by Fyre. As you know, festival organizer Billy McFarland hired a gang of models to hype up the event.

Emily, Bella, Hailey Bieber and other models appeared in the promo video, touting the festival as the place to be in spring 2017.

The subpoenas are part of an investigation as authorities try to unravel where approximately $26 million in investor money was spent before the festival came to a crashing halt, and Fyre Festival LLC went bankrupt. Specifically, the trustee wants answers on $5.2 million in payments made to agencies and artists.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, McFarland cut Kendall's Co. a check for $275k back in January 2017. Kendall then posted on Instagram, saying some of Kanye's artists would headline Fyre.

IMG Models -- which reps Bella Hadid, Bieber and Elsa Hosk -- received $1,214,976 from McFarland. DNA Modeling, which reps Emily, got $299k.

UTA -- another huge talent agency that received $90k --and Soulja Boy ($115k) could also be subpoenaed.

Of course, the Fyre Festival was a colossal disaster. Concertgoers plunked down thousands after they were promised a luxury oasis but instead were forced to sleep in tents. The food sucked too.

Didn't take long for authorities to pounce and make McFarland pay ... he got 6 years in prison. There's also a $100 million class-action lawsuit against McFarland and JaRule, his partner.

Jimmy Kimmel's good friend who was arrested for allegedly making criminal threats from inside his beachside rental home got busted because of a key ear-witness -- his estranged wife ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us famous chef and best selling author Adam Perry Lang's arrest was based in large part on the 911 recording -- in which a man said he was inside Jimmy's Hermosa Beach rental home with explosives and had assaulted his girlfriend with a high-powered rifle.

Our law enforcement sources say cops went to the home of Lang's estranged wife at around 3 AM Sunday and asked her if she could ID the voice on the call. We're told she said it could be Adam and it sounded like him, except for a Canadian phrase the caller used at the end.

Cops tell us there was other evidence that led to Lang's arrest, although they would not be specific. We're told cops on scene talked with Lang when he came out of the house and claim his voice sounded like the 911 caller.

Lang's lawyer, Glen T. Jonas, begs to differ, saying his client absolutely did not call the cops and insists the 8-hour standoff occurred because he had his ringer off and was sound asleep.

Jonas tells TMZ, "He immediately cooperated once he was notified of the commotion. Mr. Lang was the victim of 'swatting.' The person that called 911 gave the address which is consistent with swatting. There is no landline at the residence and his cellphone logs show he made no calls to 911. We are confident he will be fully exonerated."

R. Kelly chewed out his ex-girlfriend, Halle Calhoun, in a fit of jealousy, which allegedly sparked a physical attack after one of his concerts ... but R. Kelly's camp calls the accusation BS.

The sources connected to Halle say the attack went down sometime in 2017. Halle -- a Georgia woman who was 19 or 20 and living with the singer at the time -- was attending one of his concerts, and when he came backstage afterward, we're told he accused her of looking at another man.

We're told Halle took the first shot, shoving R. Kelly ... who retaliated by grabbing her by her clothes "around her neck" and tossing her like a rag doll into a wall. The alleged incident went down in front of multiple witnesses -- including Joycelyn Savage and Azriel Clary, we're told.

Halle was most upset R. Kelly had broken her necklace, a beloved cross that belonged to a family member. Our sources say there were at least 2 other violent incidents, including one where R. Kelly allegedly slapped Halle -- again, because he thought she had looked at a group of men as they entered a hotel.

A source close to R. Kelly denies the allegation and claims the singer is not violent. The source says if anything like that had happened, someone would have recorded video and sold it long ago.

Halle had been with R. Kelly for more than a year at the time of the alleged attack, but she ended up leaving him at the end of 2017. She's now back home in Georgia, and dating rapper Rocko.

NFL wide receiver Lucky Whitehead was arrested in Virginia -- and this time, cops are CERTAIN they got the right guy.

The former Dallas Cowboys player was pulled over around 2 AM on Dec. 23 after cops say he failed to obey a traffic signal.

During the stop, cops suspected the 26-year-old had been drinking -- and asked him to perform a breathalyzer test. Whitehead refused but cops say there was enough evidence to prove he was intoxicated so they arrested him for DUI.

He was hauled to a nearby police station where he was booked for a bunch of charges including DUI, driving without a license and failure to use a seat belt.

He's due in court next month.

Of course, Lucky was WRONGFULLY named as a suspect in a shoplifting case in Virginia in 2017 -- when the real perpetrator lied to police and said he was the NFL player. The dude even gave cops Lucky's date of birth and social security number.

Despite the fact Lucky wasn't even in Virginia at the time of the incident, the Cowboys cut him. He was later picked up by the NY Jets.

Whitehead was cut by the Jets in 2018 and now he's a free agent looking for a job.

Trippie Redd's striking a very sweet plea deal in his arrest for attacking a fellow rapper in Atlanta ... no jail time, and less than a year of probation ... TMZ has learned

Trippie entered a no contest plea to disorderly conduct and got 3 other charges dropped -- simple battery, fighting in public and criminal trespass ... never happened. He gets 6 months probation and has to pay $2,425 in restitution to the victim.

TMZ broke the story ... Trippie and his pal, Lil Wop, got busted last May for allegedly putting a beatdown on an ATL rapper named FDM Grady. FDM claimed the whole fight started because they dissed his GF.

Remember when a bunch of jerks burglarized Rob Gronkowski's home while he was playing in the Super Bowl last season??

His big bro says there's no way in hell that happens again next week ... 'cause Chris Gronkowski tells TMZ Sports the Pats superstar has beefed up his home security system!!!

Actually ... Chris says the reason Rob's Boston-area pad was broken into last year was because some of Gronk's roommates forgot to set the alarm.

But, Chris tells us that mistake won't happen again ... and even if it does -- Gronk's beefed up his security with a brand-new camera system.

"That place will be on lockdown for sure now."

FYI ... the 3 guys who broke into Rob's place last season and stole an Apple Watch, a Rolex, 2 rare coins and multiple firearms -- were all caught and arrested.

Now, Chris is warning the same thing will happen to anybody who tries it again, saying, "They're definitely going to get caught."

We also asked Chris about his Ice Shaker business -- the one A-Rod and Mark Cuban have famously invested in -- and ya gotta hear why he's banking on J. Lo to give the company a huge boost!!

Erykah Badu and Taraji P. Henson were way out of line with their initial public reactions to the R. Kelly scandal ... so says one of the first celebs to speak out on R. Kelly's alleged abuse.

Sparkle, who collabed with R. Kelly on her 1998 hit song, "Be Careful," has major issues with the way Erykah and Taraji initially seemed to come to R. Kelly's defense ... because Sparkle says weak responses like theirs prevent other victims from coming forward.

Sparkle, who is featured in "Surviving R. Kelly," says the black community needs to show R. Kelly some tough love ... NOT the unconditional love Erykah offered.

As for Taraji comparing the number of people using the #MuteRKelly hashtag with the number of people using similar hashtags for Harvey Weinstein ... Sparkle says the comparison is stupid because abusers are abusers. Period.

6:20 PM PT -- Lang's lawyer, Glen T. Jonas, tells TMZ, "The 'male' that called 911 was absolutely not Adam Perry Lang. Mr. Lang will be cleared of any wrongdoing. He was fast asleep with his ringer off. He immediately cooperated once he was notified of the commotion."

3:15 PM PT -- We've learned Lang was booked on making felony criminal threats and his bail was set at $50,000. Now this is interesting ... according to the cops, when they arrived at the house they tried for "several hours" to make contact with Lang. When they finally did, a police official tells us the crisis team "made telephone contact with the male who ultimately agreed to exit the residence." The word "ultimately" could be telling ... it makes it sound like Lang was not immediately willing to exit.

2:30 PM PT -- Hermosa Beach police just told us they are not calling this a swatting situation. One officer said, "There is a reason we arrested him [Lang]. There is evidence detectives are now processing." This is in contrast to what we were told by Jimmy's people. A rep for Jimmy tells us Kimmel was told specifically by a lieutenant they believed it was a case of swatting.

A beach house owned by Jimmy Kimmel was the scene of a massive police presence Saturday just before midnight ... in what may be a swatting situation ... TMZ has learned.

Eyewitnesses tell us a slew of cops swarmed Kimmel's Hermosa Beach home -- a house that is not his primary residence. We're told Jimmy and his family were not there. A friend of his -- Adam Perry Lang -- was staying at the house and sleeping. Lang is a chef and best selling author.

Police helicopters were flying above, and there was also at least one police-operated drone. We're told houses adjacent to Kimmel's corner lot were evacuated as a precaution. Cops tell us they were there for 8 hours before they were able to establish contact with Lang.

TMZ has obtained dispatch audio of cops explaining ... a male called 911 saying he had two explosives in the home and he'd assaulted his girlfriend with a rifle.

We've learned one person was taken into custody -- Lang, who apparently woke up, walked outside and was escorted to a police car without incident.

Jimmy went to the Hermosa Beach Police Department Sunday at around noon and bailed his friend out. We're told cops have not yet formally cleared Lang.

Cops found no explosives, weapons or any evidence of a shooting inside the house.

9:00 AM PT -- R. Kelly's attorney Steve Greenberg tells us, "Mr. Kelly has not violated the law. Certainly not the Mann Act. The story has flawed factual predicates. Beyond that, we remain unaware of any investigation, anywhere."

R. Kelly allegedly arranged a coast-to-coast trip for Azriel Clary when she was underage, and the FBI is now looking into the trip to see if R. Kelly committed a federal crime ... TMZ has learned.

Azriel, one of the women featured in "Surviving R. Kelly," was flown from Palm Springs to Phoenix to Orlando on May 25, 2015. She flew US Airways, leaving Cali at 6:57 AM and eventually landing in Florida at 4:09 PM.

A source connected to Azriel's family tells us the flights were arranged by a woman who was R. Kelly's assistant at the time.

Here's why it's potentially a big deal. Azriel was only 17 at that time and that means R. Kelly could have violated the Mann Act -- the federal act that makes it illegal to transport a minor across state lines for purposes of sex, debauchery or prostitution.

We're told the FBI just learned about the flights within the last week. As we reported ... the FBI has also been in touch with Joycelyn Savage's father multiple times in the last 18 months -- so it's clear the feds are taking the R. Kelly allegations seriously.

R. Kelly sources tell us the singer believes he did nothing wrong because he claims this signed note from Azriel's mom, Alice ... gave Kelly's assistant consent to care for Azriel.

It's not a great defense, because you can see it's dated Sept. 21, 2015 -- but Azriel made the trip back in May 2015. However, we're told R. Kelly's camp thinks the note shows her parents were generally willing to let Azriel travel with him.

He might end up having to make that point in court. Stay tuned.

Chris Brown's touched down in the USA, less than a week after being arrested overseas for allegedly raping a woman ... something he strongly denies, and led him to file a defamation suit.

CB landed in a private jet with his crew at the Van Nuys airport outside L.A. Saturday afternoon. Everyone looked pretty chill after the long flight ... and what was surely a turbulent week in Paris.

As we reported ... Brown was arrested by French police Monday after a woman claimed she was raped by the singer in his hotel suite. CB was released on his own recognizance without bail hours later, though, and free to leave France ... though he stuck around for work.

While the rape case hasn't been dismissed, we're told police had big problems with the accuser's version of events ... which factored into their decision to let Brown go.

Bobby Beausoleil -- one of Charles Manson's followers who's been in prison for murder for almost 49 years -- is on the verge of getting out, and he might have a Lady Gaga documentary to thank for helping his case.

If you don't know, Beausoleil's not considered part of the Manson "family," but he was an associate and was convicted of first-degree murder in 1970. Despite an initial life sentence, he was recommended for parole by a California parole panel earlier this month ... after being rejected 18 times before.

According to transcripts from his parole hearing, Beausoleil was asked several questions about his music and art in relation to his connection to Manson, and he made it clear ... his art stands alone.

To prove his point ... Beausoleil pointed out the soundtrack he provided for the 1972 short film "Lucifer Rising" was sampled in the 2017 documentary about Lady Gaga, "Gaga: Five Foot Two."

Beausoleil told the parole board ... "The Lady Gaga documentary used a portion of it ... and it has been used in other films." He added ... "It is respected on its own merits as art ... I think it is important to try to see it as something that is not representative of something that is related to Manson."

We looked into it, and his story checks out ... 2 tracks from "Lucifer Rising" were used in the Gaga doc, and Bobby is credited as the writer.

It's unclear if Lady Gaga had any input about the musical selections for the doc -- which was directed by Chris Moukarbel -- but we reached out to her rep ... no word back so far.

11:00 AM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell us ... Bates hailed a cab in Manhattan and was taken to his hotel in Queens, and the fare totaled $32.06. We're told, he told the driver he didn't have cash or a card and took off ... so the driver called the police.

We're also told before Bates attacked the sergeant at the station, he said, "I want to punch you in the face" ... then did exactly that.

Our sources say Bates has now officially been charged with assault on a police officer and resisting arrest, along with theft of services.

A relatively unknown NFL linebacker just made a name for himself in the worst way ... by allegedly flying off the handle and punching a cop in the face!

According to law enforcement sources ... Lions LB Trevor Bates was arrested around 3 AM Saturday morning at a Hampton Inn in Queens, NY for refusing to pay his cab fare. Cops were called to the hotel and took him into custody for theft of services.

We're told while he was at the local station preparing for fingerprinting, Bates became irate and declared he didn't like one of the officers in the room. He then allegedly punched a sergeant ... causing a laceration above the cop's left eye.

Our sources say the sergeant received 3 stitches and was treated for a concussion at the hospital before being released.

Bates was taken to the hospital, as well, for a psych eval. We're told he has not formally been charged yet for assaulting an officer.

A few lucky DMX fans working at a Maryland gas station were among the first people to see the rapper after he got out of prison, and when they asked for a photo he replied ... "X Gon Give it to Ya!"

Folks at the Royal Farms store in Frederick tell TMZ ... DMX and his crew of about 20 pulled in Friday night around 7 PM to gas up and grab some goodies. We're told everyone immediately recognized him and he was super friendly to the staff ... agreeing to snap several pics before they took off.

We broke the story ... DMX became a free man again Friday after he was released from federal prison in West Virginia. He completed a one-year sentence for tax evasion. He was first seen out in public post-prison with his son and fiancee, grabbing breakfast at a local spot.

Sarah Palin's oldest son is walking free in Alaska after being released from a residential center he was forced to live in following his domestic violence arrest ... TMZ has learned.

The Alaska Department of Corrections confirms Track Palin was released Thursday from the Cordova Residential Center, where he was serving his sentence for a domestic violence incident.

As we reported ... Track was sentenced to a year in the center in October for allegedly hitting a woman with whom he lived. Track checked into the facility Dec. 5, and Thursday's release means he's getting out way earlier than expected.

According to online court records ... Track is getting credit for time spent on an electronic monitoring device, hence the early release.

"Black Mirror" actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw told cops she's being stalked by a woman in Los Angeles ... and the case took a super dark turn when police found a tracking device under her car.

According to a search warrant obtained by TMZ, the alleged stalker placed a GPS tracker on Gugu's vehicle and has been tailing her around the city for over 2 months.

The details of the case are shocking ... in the docs, investigators say the alleged stalker keeps popping up wherever Gugu goes -- hotels, restaurants, spin classes and even her home.

Even more startling ... the warrant states Gugu's alleged stalker lives on her street.

According to the warrant, Gugu told cops the stalker has been calling her and her boyfriend and then hanging up ... this, in addition to snapping photos of Gugu.

In the docs, Gugu says she's been living in constant fear because she thinks the alleged stalker could show up to her place and become violent.

6:02 PM PT -- Stone is now stumping for money, because he says he can't pay off his mounting legal bills without help from the public.

Stone says he's facing $2 million in potential legal fees, and plugs a website where people can donate money to help him pay for his defense.

Stone also says he needs money to pay for security for him and his family, because he says he gets 4 to 5 death threats a week and gets harassed in public.

9:40 AM PT -- Stone just greeted a group of fans -- and haters -- telling them he'll plead not guilty to the charges.

8:47 AM PT -- Stone was just released on a $250,000 bond. Interestingly, he threw up the infamous Nixon double peace sign as he walked out.

Stone worked on Prez Nixon's '72 campaign, and also has a back tattoo of the President's face.

Roger Stone ain't having a TGIF kinda day -- FBI agents pounded on his door before sunrise and arrested President Trump's ex-campaign adviser.

Stone was arrested around 6 AM Friday at his house in Fort Lauderdale after being indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller. Armed agents in bulletproof vests surrounded Stone's home and hauled him off ... reportedly in his pajamas. His apartment in Manhattan was also raided.

Stone's been charged with 7 counts -- 5 counts of false statements, one count of witness tampering and one count of obstruction of an official proceeding.

As you know, Mueller's team has been investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election, and Stone has previously acknowledged communicating with Guccifer 2.0 during the campaign, who intelligence officials believe was a Twitter account operated by Russia to hack Democratic emails.

Stone's also been linked to WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange, who he publicly praised after the hacked emails were released. Stone's denied any contact with Russia or WikiLeaks since the election.

Stone's arrest isn't entirely a surprise -- especially to him ... he said in May he was prepared to be indicted, and claimed Mueller might do it in an effort to silence him.

If you're keeping track, this makes 5 associates of the Prez who have been busted by Mueller ... following Paul Manafort, Michael Flynn, Rick Gates and George Papadopoulos. His former lawyer, Michael Cohen, separately pled guilty to tax evasion and campaign finance violations.

Stone's expected to be arraigned Friday in federal court in Ft. Lauderdale.

Originally Published -- 6:43 AM PST