Crime

1:30 PM PT -- The Columbus County Sheriff's Office just told TMZ they, along with the Columbus County Animal Control, have "initiated a joint investigation into allegations of animal cruelty. The investigation is ongoing."

1:11 PM PT -- A source close to Jenelle tells us right after Nugget nipped at his daughter, David brought the dog outside and continuously slammed him against their back deck ... from there, he took Nugget into a wooded area and shot him.

12:07 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell us Animal Control officers just went to Jenelle's home to do their check. We're told officers were able to drive onto the property through an open gate, but there was a grey pit bull on the porch and several "No Trespassing" signs.

Our source says the Animal Control officers -- fearing for their safety -- left the property and alerted the Sheriff's Department who, we're told, will now attempt to complete the visit.

We're told officers want to determine if Nugget is alive and whose name is on ownership papers for the dog ... from there, they'll be able to determine next steps.

Animal Control wants Jenelle Evans and David Eason to answer some questions about the death of their family dog, but that might be easier said than done ... based on David's history with unwanted visitors.

TMZ's learned that following the news that Jenelle's husband shot and killed her French Bulldog, Nugget -- for nipping their daughter, Ensley -- North Carolina's animal welfare hotline was flooded with calls about the incident.

We're told the Attorney General's Office received 138 complaints and referred them to Animal Control after review, and also informed the Columbus County Sheriff.

Sources connected to the case tell us Animal Control is sending an officer to the 'Teen Mom' couple's house Thursday with a mission -- confirm the dog is dead, and verify Jenelle and David have possession of the dog's corpse.

It's unclear what, if any, legal action could be taken after that -- but it likely won't be an easy visit for Animal Control. Eason reacted aggressively when authorities showed up at his home in December.

As we reported, he posted a series of gun-crazed videos after he said Secret Service drove up on his property to question him about some threatening social media posts. He said he wasn't afraid to shoot future trespassers ... and showed off his stockpile of ammo.

David's alarming behavior reached a new level Wednesday, when he practically admitted on Instagram to killing Nugget. Jenelle later confirmed it, claiming David dragged the dog into the woods and shot him.

Up to this point, David's gotten away with it. The Columbus Co. Sheriff's Dept. made it clear the only way they'll take action is if Jenelle files a police report. We were told they don't rely on "sensationalized" social media reports. We'll see if a report from Animal Control will change their mind.

NBA star D'Angelo Russell was busted for marijuana at a New York City airport Wednesday night ... after TSA found weed stashed in his checked bag.

DLo's luggage was searched before his flight to Louisville took off from LaGuardia airport around 7 PM ... when a suspicious can of Arizona Iced Tea flagged the system.

As it turns out, it wasn't just an ordinary can of tea -- it was one of those "cans" that actually has a secret compartment people use to hide their drugs (y'all stoners know what we're talking about).

We're told there was more weed found in a grinder inside the fake can as well.

Law enforcement sources tell us Russell initially tried to say the weed belonged to his brother, but he was alone and in possession of the bag.

TMZ Sports has learned that Russell was cited for possession of marijuana (under 50 grams) ... and was allowed to leave. We're told the summons usually results in the defendant paying a fine.

The Brooklyn Nets released a statement Thursday afternoon, saying, "We have been made aware of the situation involving D’Angelo Russell and are in the process of gathering more information at this time."

It was a breakout season for Russell ... who averaged 21 points and 7 assists per game and made his 1st All-Star game.

Remy Ma's criminal past could come back to bite her, because it means she's facing the possibility of added jail time ... stemming from her latest assault case.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the rapper is under investigation not only for allegedly punching "Love & Hip Hop New York" star Brittney Taylor in the face at a concert last month, but also to determine if the incident was a parole violation.

We broke the story ... Remy turned herself in to cops Wednesday and was booked for misdemeanor assault. She bailed out shortly afterward, and her attorney claims all of Taylor's accusations are lies.

Regardless, the case has sparked a probe by New York State's Division of Parole, because as we've reported ... Remy's currently on parole. She has been since she was released from prison in 2014 after doing 6 years for her connection to a shooting.

We're told the parole authorities are reviewing her latest assault case -- and if she did violate parole ... it could be revoked, and she could get additional time behind bars.

For now, the judge ordered Remy to have no contact with Taylor, and imposed an 8 PM curfew.

Tyreek Hill is adamantly denying he's ever abused his 3-year-old son ... and says his fiancee is the one who's gotten physical with the boy in the past -- and he has text messages to prove it.

It's all in a letter reportedly sent to the NFL on Thursday by Hill's attorneys, who say Hill has NEVER "punched" his son and was in no way responsible for the boy's recent broken arm.

As we previously reported ... Hill's fiancee, Crystal Espinal, accused the Chiefs superstar of abusing their son in leaked audio tapes ... but Tyreek strongly denied those allegations.

Now, Hill's attorneys -- per ESPN -- are not only saying Tyreek's never beaten his son ... they're alleging it's actually Espinal who's harmed the child in the past.

Per the letter, Tyreek has text messages from Espinal that read:

Tyreek: "Crystal you know I didn't cause any bruising or harm to [our son]. But for some reason I still may be charged."

Espinal: "I know you didn't. I did. I hurt [our son]. I'm the one that did it. I was hurt and mad at you so I blamed you for everything."

Hill's attorneys in the letter also say the only times Hill has ever put his hands on his son are to either calm him down or to play with him.

The attorneys also say Tyreek's son is by no means "terrified" of the Kansas City superstar ... saying they have eyewitness accounts that "[their child]'s eyes light up when he sees" Tyreek.

The attorneys add that Tyreek is currently going through both family counseling and individual counseling ... and is "looking forward to having the opportunity" to speak with the NFL regarding the allegations.

Offset is in a heap of trouble because a warrant has been issued for his arrest, and it's a felony.

TMZ broke the story, a week ago Monday Offset was in a Target store in Sandy Springs, Georgia, when a fan eyed him, pulled out his cell phone and tried taking a video of the rapper shopping after he checked out.

The fan, Junior Gibbons, said, "What up, Offset?" and that set Offset off. The video Gibbons shot shows Offset smack the phone out of his hand, and he says the instrument crashed to the ground and broke, shattering the screen. Offset also allegedly told him to "get that f***in' phone out of my face" afterward ... then exited the store.

Junior filed a police report last Friday, cops investigated and got a warrant.

Rick Schroder allegedly hit his girlfriend in the face and grabbed her hair during his first felony domestic violence arrest, and yet he wasn't charged -- because she refused to work with cops ... TMZ has learned.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, Schroder's GF called 911 after they had an altercation on April 2 over a video Schroder found on her phone. She told cops he asked her to leave his home and she agreed, but when she went to grab her belongings, he got violent.

She claimed Schroder grabbed her hair and blocked her from the bedroom, then hit her on the face when she tried to get away and she fell on the kitchen table.

Cops on the scene say they saw some redness and swelling on her right cheek, but she refused medical treatment and became "extremely uncooperative and refused to answer any further questions."

Schroder's GF also refused to allow officers to take any photos and stated she didn't want the "NYPD Blue" star arrested.

According to the docs ... officers followed up with her 2 days later and she told them the incident was "a big misunderstanding" and she didn't want to press charges. As we reported, the L.A. Country D.A.'s Office declined to prosecute -- on April 22 -- due to her lack of cooperation ... along with Schroder denying the assault and a lack of sufficient evidence.

Worth noting ... prosecutors don't need the victim's cooperation to charge a domestic violence suspect. Nor does the lack of photos of her injuries necessarily sink the case ... especially if officers have seen the injuries and can testify to them.

We broke the story ... Schroder was arrested again at his home this week and once again booked him for felony domestic violence on the same girlfriend.

"Tanked" star Heather King is off the hook, at least criminally, for that fight she got into with her now estranged husband and former co-star, Wayde.

Heather won't be charged or allegedly slapping Wayde in the face and kicking him in the stomach during a heated argument last month in their Las Vegas home. The City Attorney's Office tells us after reviewing all the evidence ... they didn't feel there was enough there to successfully prosecute Heather.

Case dropped.

TMZ broke the story ... Heather was arrested after cops were called to the couple's home and police said they noticed visible redness on the side of Wayde's stomach. Heather was booked for misdemeanor domestic violence.

Our sources said Heather admitted to slapping her husband but told cops she only did it because he wouldn't let her leave a room.

9:15 PM PT -- We've learned 3 agencies -- the FBI, Secret Service and Kent PD -- teamed up to nab the suspect Wednesday during a traffic stop in Kent, WA.

The man is being held in a federal detention center, and will have his initial court appearance at 2 PM PT Thursday in federal court in Seattle.

Ben Shapiro, the conservative talk show host and editor of The Daily Wire, was the target of serious death threats and the suspect has just been arrested ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us, Shapiro, who frequently appears on cable news shows and has a hugely popular podcast, filed a police report with the LAPD. We're told the threats were not just against Shapiro but his family as well. He's married with one daughter.

We're told the Department got in touch with the FBI and created a joint task force to hunt down the culprit.

Our sources say a man was arrested Wednesday in Washington state for making the threats.

We're told these threats were "extremely serious" ... not just someone blowing off steam.

Shapiro recently created a stink when he suggested on his radio show that Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar has "a lot of the same opinions about Jews that the white supremacist had in that manifesto." He was referring to the attack at the San Diego-area synagogue in which the shooter killed a woman and injured several others.

Robert Kraft has been ordered to appear in court IN PERSON in his prostitution case -- and it's all going down in 3 weeks.

Kraft has been sending his legal team to Florida over the past few months to battle it out with prosecutors in his place ... in an effort to block officials from releasing the graphic footage from inside the spa.

Kraft's legal team have been grilling investigators over the past few days -- and Wednesday, they made their closing arguments as to why the video should never see the light of day.

As we previously reported, cops say they have graphic surveillance footage from inside the massage room at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa in Jupiter, Florida showing the 77-year-old New England Patriots owner receiving sexual acts from two spa employees.

Kraft has already apologized publicly for his actions -- but he's entered a not guilty plea in his solicitation case and plans to fight the charges. His attorneys have argued the footage was illegally obtained PLUS the release of the video would taint a potential jury pool and ruin his chances for a fair trial.

On Wednesday, the judge said he would make a decision soon that would impact the fate of the video -- and set a hearing date for May 21 ... ordering Kraft to appear in person.

Unclear why he wants Kraft to attend since the hearing is only listed a "calendar call" -- which generally just a status update in a case.

It would be the first time Kraft would appear in court for this case -- something he's clearly been trying to avoid since the information went public back in February.

4:30 PM PT -- Remy has officially bailed out ... but she didn't have much to say to our camera.

3:41 PM PT -- Remy just saw the judge -- and her bail was set at $1,500 -- she's expected to post that shortly. Remy's attorney, Dawn Florio, claimed all of the accusations made by Taylor are a lie. For instance, Taylor allegedly claimed the attack happened at 9:30 PM and Florio says there's video proof Remy Ma was at home at that time.

Florio also argued it was suspicious Taylor lawyered up with a civil attorney immediately after the attack.

The judge also ordered a protective order, meaning Remy is not to have any contact with Taylor ... Remy will also have an 8 PM curfew.

It took a couple weeks, but Remy Ma is in police custody for allegedly punching Brittney Taylor at a concert last month.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the rapper surrendered to cops Wednesday, flanked by her attorney. We're told she's been booked for misdemeanor assault.

As we reported ... the "Love & Hip Hop New York" star claimed Remy punched her in the right eye while backstage during the Pretty Lou Benefit Concert at Irving Plaza near Union Square on April 16.

While police were investigating the incident, Taylor geared up to file a civil suit against Remy by requesting cops preserve all evidence of the alleged assault, including surveillance footage.

Taylor's attorney, Sanford Rubenstein, tells TMZ that this is real life, not reality TV, and that Brittney is a victim. He stresses that Brittney "has confidence in our system of justice and will continue to fully cooperate with the authorities."

11:42 AM PT -- According to our NYPD sources, Octavia is now a person of interest and wanted for questioning in the case.

Sebastian Telfair's estranged wife claims the NBA star's sister threatened to "kill my kids and cut my face" ... all because she testified against Sebastian in his NYC gun case.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the LAPD responded to a call last week from Samantha Telfair, who claims Octavia Telfair called her roughly 52 times making various threats ... including a threat to "Slice [her] face and kill [her] children."

Samantha told cops Octavia was furious that Samantha took the stand earlier this month and told prosecutors she had seen Sebastian with multiple weapons, including the gas-operated submachine gun he was allegedly carrying when he was arrested in June 2017.

Sebastian -- a former NBA prodigy who flamed out -- was convicted in his gun possession case last week and now faces up to 15 years in prison when he's sentenced in June.

Samantha lives in L.A. which is why the LAPD is involved. We're told officers took a criminal threats report and the LAPD is now investigating.

We're told Octavia is believed to live in New York -- and sources tell us the NYPD is also involved in the investigation because Samantha filed an aggravated harassment report in New York as well.

Attempts to reach out to Octavia for comment were unsuccessful.

As we previously reported, Telfair -- a 33-year-old former high school phenom who spent 12 seasons in the NBA -- was arrested in June 2017 in Brooklyn when cops found several weapons during a traffic stop.

Officials say Telfair had 3 pistols and what appeared to be a semi-automatic rifle along with a ton of ammo and a bulletproof vest ... as well as some weed.

10:15 AM PT -- Sources close to Raz tell TMZ ... the singer and his GF got into an argument that turned physical when she attacked him, and Raz's side claims he was defending himself.

We're told the girlfriend informed a family member about the altercation, which led to cops being called and Raz B being arrested. Raz insists he did not purposely strike or choke her.

Law enforcement sources tell us police will be investigating to see what led to the altercation, and some evidence may include surveillance footage because it happened in a parking lot area.

Dispatch audio describing the alleged assault mentions a female being strangled by the ramp of a Macy's store.

Raz B's behind bars and is facing a domestic violence charge in Minneapolis ... TMZ has learned.

According to the Hennepin County jail ... the B2K singer was arrested for domestic assault by strangulation early Wednesday morning. Our sources say the victim was Raz's girlfriend, and cops say they took photos of her alleged injuries as evidence.

Raz is currently being held without bail. B2K has a concert scheduled for Wednesday night at the Target Center in Minneapolis as part of their reunion tour.

As we told you last month ... Raz decided to continue on with the highly anticipated tour after announcing he was quitting just a few days into it. He told us he was scared for his safety and feeling unappreciated, but was going to stick it out anyway.

The tour's got 10 more stops left and is scheduled to end in Las Vegas in late May ... but Raz B's involvement is now in jeopardy.

Tyrann Mathieu only signed with the Chiefs a few weeks ago -- but he ain't afraid to speak his mind about his new teammate, Tyreek Hill ... saying he's very disappointed after hearing the disturbing audiotapes.

The Honey Badger appeared on SB Nation Radio when the topic turned to Hill ... who was expected to be one of the focal points of the K.C. Chiefs offense in 2019.

But, the Chiefs have suspended the star WR in the wake of audiotapes which recorded Hill arguing with his fiancee, Crystal Espinal, about the child abuse case involving their 3-year-old son.

During the argument, Hill told Espinal, "You need to be terrified of me too, bitch."

So, how does Tyrann feel about the situation?

"I think it's sad, man. Obviously, very disappointing," Mathieu told SB Nation.

"I came to the Chiefs with the hopes that I can watch him play football and watch him run back punts and catch long bombs and outrun everybody."

When asked specifically about the audio -- in which Espinal accuses Hill of breaking their son's arm -- Mathieu says, "It's very disappointing. Not only from a teammate standpoint but I'm a father as well.

Hill has denied breaking his son's arm.

Mathieu says he's only been with the Chiefs for a few weeks and doesn't know Hill that well -- so he can't vouch for Tyreek's character.

10:46 AM PT -- The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office has declined to prosecute Rick for his April 2 arrest due to lack of sufficient evidence. The investigation into this morning's arrest is still ongoing.

Rick Schroder is in jail after an early morning bust for allegedly striking his girlfriend ... and it's the second time cops have hauled him in for alleged domestic violence.

Cops got a call around 12:43 AM for a domestic incident at the "NYPD Blue" and "Silver Spoons" star's home. When they arrived they spoke to him and his girlfriend -- and shortly after that, Schroder was arrested for felony domestic violence ... according to our law enforcement sources.

The fact he was booked for a felony typically means the victim had visible marks of some kind. We're told Schroder's girlfriend refused medical treatment on the scene.

Turns out, the L.A. County Sheriff's Dept. made almost the exact same arrest 30 days ago. Our sources say Schroder was taken into custody on April 2 ... also for felony domestic violence.

We're told deputies went to his home -- again, a little after midnight -- after he allegedly punched his girlfriend in the face as she tried to leave their home.

Schroder bailed out after that arrest. He is currently in custody for this morning's arrest, and we're told his bail this time is set at $50,000.

We've reached out to Schroder's reps ... no word back yet.

G Herbo is now facing a battery charge for an altercation that went down with the mother of his child ... and prosecutors say the rapper dragged the woman by her hair.

TMZ broke the story ... G Herbo was arrested in Atlanta last month after cops said he assaulted Ariana Fletcher during an argument. According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Herbo's been charged with one count of misdemeanor battery.

Prosecutors are accusing him of intentionally hurting Ari by dragging her by her hair and scratching her arm badly enough to leave visible wounds.

Prosecutors tell us the 23-year-old Chicago rapper -- who has a son with Ari -- is now staring down a possible max sentence of 1 year behind bars, if he's convicted.

As we reported ... Ari is now dating boxer Gervonta Davis, and she's pregnant with his child.

11:21 AM PT -- We've obtained the dispatch audio where police seem to identify the possible suspect as a Hispanic male in shorts and a t-shirt. They identify the reporting person -- possibly Jonze -- was waiting in the middle of the street for cops to arrive.

Director Spike Jonze came face-to-face with a home intruder who was armed with a knife ... setting off an intense standoff with police.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Jonze arrived at his Los Feliz home around 6 AM Tuesday and discovered a man inside. Jonze was able to get out of the house and call the cops. We're told the man was armed with a knife and refused to come out once police arrived.

LAPD and SWAT officers swarmed the home for several hours before the man finally surrendered just before 11 AM.

Our sources say at this time, it does not appear anyone was injured during the standoff. It's unclear how the man got inside Jonze's home or if he has any connection to the director.