Crime

Darth Vader -- or his head, rather -- was taken away by the dark side yet again, but cops stepped in to save the day ... TMZ has learned. No Jedis required.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... 38-year-old Frank Hebert was arrested Monday night after he allegedly broke into the Bad Robot Productions building in Santa Monica and made off with 'Star Wars' movie memorabilia ... including Darth's helmet.

We're told cops responded to the scene and were told by security personnel that Hebert had been captured on surveillance video illegally entering the building through the rooftop, and casually walked out with a shopping cart full of stuff.

Our sources say cops quickly found a guy pushing a cart down the street not too far away, which we're told was full of 'Star Wars' stuff -- as in, original props used in the actual movies.

Cops say underneath a mountain of 'Star Wars' pillows, there were 2 helmets ... Darth's iconic black one and a Storm Trooper one too. They arrested him, and Hebert was booked for felony non-residential burglary. He posed for this mug shot heading in.

Lil Yase -- an up-and-coming Bay Area rapper -- was shot and killed this weekend in what amounts to a mysterious murder with no explanation thus far ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Yase tell us ... he was, indeed, shot early Saturday morning -- and his body was discovered somewhere in the southern section of the East Bay ... which is miles away from where he was last seen.

Our sources tell us Yase was hanging out with his crew late Friday night at a recording studio in Marin County -- slightly north of San Francisco -- and left on his own at one point around 11:30 or midnight, telling his buddies he'd be right back.

We're told no more than an hour and a half later, word came in that Yase had been shot dead somewhere in the East Bay -- which is damn near an hour away by freeway, depending on what part of town you head to down there.

We're told folks in Yase's inner circle are dumbfounded -- as he had no known enemies and had done nothing they can see leading to something like this. Our sources say Yase might've played tough in his music, but in reality ... all he was really about was rapping, promoting his label (Highway 420 Productions) and labelmates, and gaming. That's it ... he had no beef with anyone anywhere, we're told.

He had just posted a photo of himself on Friday, showing his Thanksgiving festivities ... with a caption that read, "If my n**** trippin den I’m trippin it’s up wit UNK😤😈 #HappyThanksGivin🦃" It's his last post on IG -- and has since gotten tons of tributes from fellow artists in the Bay Area and beyond in the comments.

Yase started releasing music as young as 18 years old, but truly burst onto the scene with his single "Get It In" in 2015 -- which he went on to create a remix of that garnered even more national attention the following year.

He released a string of hits that racked up hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube over the years -- including songs like "No Diss," "Demon," "What You Mean," "Yeah Yeah," "Furl," "Bum B****," "Mad," "Workin" and many others.

Yase collaborated with artists such as Yalla, A.B. Milli, Cash Kidd, G-Val, That Boy Tyson, Stunna June, IamSu!, Shoreline Mafia and several other musicians, both local and otherwise.

We've reached out to Alameda County to confirm Yase's body is in their possession, and if any suspects have been apprehended -- so far ... no word back.

Lil Yase -- a Sunnydale native -- was only 26 years old. RIP

Check out the people who went from jerks to criminals Saturday night after being booted from a Miami restaurant for not wearing a mask.

The party of jerks tried to dine at Ms. Cheezious, a popular restaurant in the MiMo District.  They refused to wear a mask per the owner's instructions, so they were told to leave. The owner, Brian Mullins, says they were visibly upset as they left.

The group stood outside the restaurant ... with a dude lifting a woman with whom he did a 360 for some unknown reason.

The surveillance video shows the 2 men slinking off-camera, and messing with something.  All of a sudden you see water gushing in the air as the group flees.

The 2 men cut the waterline ... it forced the restaurant to close until the line was repaired.

So many things. First, what kind of jerks are these people? Second, it's tough enough for restaurants to survive these days, so to do something like this -- OVER MASK-WEARING -- is heinous.

Kim Kardashian's visit with an inmate on death row in Oklahoma is being hailed as a big morale boost for the folks already fighting for Julius Jones' freedom.

Kim brought a lot of extra attention to Julius' case when she met with him face-to-face in Oklahoma City ... and we're told it's got his family excited and supporters energized.

Folks at the "Justice for Julius" campaign tell us their website has seen a tenfold traffic increase, and thousands of emails from all over the world are flowing into the site and into the inbox at the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, urging a commutation of his sentence.

Jones, a Black man, was only 19 when he was arrested for the shooting death of a 45-year-old white man named Paul Howell back in 1999. Jones was convicted of 1st-degree murder in 2002 and sentenced to death, but lots of folks say the case was racially charged with little evidence tying him to the scene. Julius claims he was framed and it was racial.

Julius filed a clemency petition last year and is waiting on the parole board to recommend his sentence be commuted ... a final decision is in the hands of Governor Kevin Stitt.

We're told since Kim's visit Cleveland Browns quarterback, Baker Mayfield, who's been wearing Julius' name on the back of his helmet all season and has been wearing custom cleats with Julius' face on it, is fully on board the Julius team.

But, more than anything, we're told Kim's visit brought renewed hope and energy to the folks on the ground in Oklahoma who have been working tirelessly on the case.

Julius' sister, Antoinette Jones, tells TMZ ... Kim provided the family with a sense of optimism moving forward, making good on her word to fight for Julius. Antoinette says Kim's drive reminds her of Robert Kardashian Sr.

It's pretty heartbreaking ... Julius' sister says he told Kim he's still broken up about not being able to take her to junior and senior prom because he was locked up, and he told Kim he wants to make it up to his sister. She says Kim feels that's another reason why Kim wants to fight for his freedom.

Not everyone is feeling great about Kim's visit though.

Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter called her out for advocating for Jones, claiming "every criticism surrounding his case has been disproven" and railing against "celebrity endorsements."

Harvey Weinstein is getting the home movie treatment from behind bars -- having cameras record his every move so he doesn't go the way of Jeffrey Epstein ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... a correctional officer is assigned to follow Weinstein anytime he's on the move from within the state prison he's currently serving his sentence at -- which is Wende Correctional Facility in upstate NY.

Aside from the regular surveillance cameras that might be fixated on HW at any given time, we're told whichever guard is assigned to shadow him for the day has a camera on him at eye-level ... basically, he's being recorded damn-near round-the-clock.

It's unclear if it's a body cam or hand held camera -- prison officials tell us they can use both when monitoring an inmate's safety -- but in any case it's lights, camera, action all over again for Mr. Weinstein.

As for why ... the concerns followed Weinstein from Rikers to where is is currently -- prison officials are worried if they take their eyes off Weinstein things could quickly go awry.

More importantly, we're told state prison officials are doing this to tamp down any conspiracy theories that might arise if things go south -- not just that, they're looking to cover their butts  from criminal liability.

Our sources say the thinking is ... if there's a mountain of visual evidence at the ready, nobody can accuse them of screwing up like the Epstein guards allegedly did.

Weinstein is in frail health and there were concerns last week he may have had COVID, but he tested negative.

One of President Trump's supporters is facing criminal charges after being caught on tape coughing on someone without a mask on -- and it happened on 45's own turf, no less.

The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office tells TMZ ... 61-year-old Raymond Deskins has been charged with misdemeanor simple assault and was released on a summons -- this after somebody got a citizen's warrant from a country magistrate.

All of that follows what was captured on video Saturday at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, VA -- just outside of D.C. -- when a man, believed to be Deskins, was seen arguing with a protester ... and then forcefully coughing on her.

In the clip, the man isn't wearing a face mask or covering of any kind ... and he seems to do the exaggerated coughing/blowing in the woman's direction after she makes a fuss about him being too close to her and expressing COVID concerns.

At first, LCSO told us since cops weren't on the scene and didn't see this first-hand -- and because the video didn't quite capture everything unfold in its entirety -- their hands were tied as far as arresting anyone after both parties claimed assault.

So, as a temporary fix, we're told the man and woman in the video were instructed to run to court and get a warrant themselves ... apparently, only the woman followed through thus far. It's unclear what spurred Deskins' assault claim.

Two noteworthy things about this -- this appears to be one of the rare instances of somebody coughing on another person on purpose (outside of a law enforcement officer, which we've seen) and getting rung up on charges for it. It hardly happens.

A bunch of free-spirited sex revelers had their good time cut short by cops in the Big Apple -- an interesting contrast to another attempted New York bust gone bad.

The NYC Sheriff's Office busted in and broke up an underground swingers club early Sunday morning in Queens ... which is said to have been hosting upwards of 80 people -- a big no-no under Gov. Cuomo's new 10-person-or-less rule.

Sure enough, there was a rager going down -- music was blasting and people were mingling and sipping on booze, which the Sheriff's Office says was being illegally served. Oh, and there were some people making whoopee too ... all together.

The cops say they found three couples having sex in a small room -- apparently, this swinger joint -- which goes by Caligula, of all names -- has services for that if you're looking to get busy. The Sheriff's Office even snapped a shot of one of those rooms, plus a price sheet going over rates, and what looks like a box of condoms!

All in all, two organizers and one patron were charged with misdemeanors -- and the place was cleared out. The NYP reports that the manager was hit with lots of fines ... which amounted to about $16,000 for violating emergency measures issued by the state. The guy reportedly also got dinged for booze infractions.

This is almost a complete 180 from what went down in neighboring Buffalo just the night prior -- when Sheriff's deputies and county health workers tried barging in on a packed business meeting to shut it down, only to get chased off by the mob.

Rapper Mo3's alleged killer was captured on surveillance footage carrying a gun as he appears to run away from the murder scene.

The Dallas Police Department released the picture late Thursday night in hopes the public can help them identify the male suspect, whom cops say was seen driving in a possible 2014 or 2015 black Chevy Camaro.

Cops are asking anyone with information to contact the Dallas Police Homicide Unit. TMZ broke the story ... Mo3 was being tailed moments before he was shot and killed in his hometown.

The rapper had left a friend's house before he noticed he was being followed from the home to a gas station.

The chase ended up on the I-35 and, in an attempt to lose the other vehicle, Mo3 tried to get around traffic but ended up crashing. We're told Mo3 got out of his car and ran for his life before he was gunned down in broad daylight.

The president of the Haiti Football Association has been BANNED FOR LIFE by FIFA -- after the soccer org. found him guilty of sexually abusing female players, including minors.

FIFA issued a statement saying 73-year-old Yves Jean-Bart is forbidden from participating in all soccer-related activities -- plus, they've hit him with over a $1 million fine.

In a statement Friday, FIFA said Jean-Bart "abused his position and sexually harassed and abused various female players, including minors, in violation of the FIFA Code of Ethics."

FIFA says it had launched an investigation into Jean-Bart and other officials in the Haiti Football Association over allegations of "systematic sexual abuse against female football players between 2014 and 2020."

The allegations have been reported this way ... female soccer players in Haiti felt pressured into having sex with Jean-Bart in order to remain in good standing with the Haiti Football Association.

Several players have spoken up about the alleged abuse to various media outlets -- detailing an allegedly horrific situation.

For his part, Jean-Bart has repeatedly DENIED the allegations -- saying back in April, "I would not encourage such practices in Haitian football, much less in the centre which is under my responsibility."

"If there were such cases, I would encourage the victims to file a complaint with the federation and the judicial authorities of the country. We are ready, at the level of the federation, to support them."

There's more ... Jean-Bart was also reportedly "cleared of any wrongdoing" earlier this week during legal proceedings in Haiti.

Former MLB prospect Brandon Martin will spend the rest of his life in a prison cell ... after a judge sentenced him to life without parole for brutally murdering 3 people, including his own father.

27-year-old Martin -- a 1st-round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Rays in 2011 -- was convicted of the triple murder earlier this month ... and was facing the death penalty.

Martin was in a Riverside County, CA courtroom on Thursday ... where the same jury that convicted him in only 4 hours decided his punishment.

The jurors spared his life -- electing not to give him the death penalty. Instead, Martin will spend the rest of his life in prison.

The story surrounding the September 2015 murders is disturbing, to say the least.

Martin brutally beat and killed his 64-year-old dad, 58-year-old uncle, and a 62-year-old man the family had hired to install an alarm to protect them from Martin. Officials say Martin used a black baseball bat (with his name inscribed on it) to kill the men.

Jeff Lowe is back under Uncle Sam's microscope -- the feds have more concerns about animals at his zoo, and want to check things out for themselves -- but Jeff says they can kick rocks.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the feds claim the 'Tiger King' star is displaying animals at Joe Exotic's former zoo in Oklahoma without the necessary licenses or care. Prosecutors believe the animals are in "serious danger" because they don't have an attending veterinarian, and are getting substandard care.

The feds paint a grisly picture of the scene on the ground, claiming some animals are malnourished, dehydrated and licking wounds from fights in their enclosures.

However, Jeff says it's impossible for the feds to know what condition the animals are in because no one outside of his team has seen them in 2 months! Jeff says, "How arrogant and ignorant of them to deduce that my animals are in anything but perfect health. Their filing doesn’t have a single factual accusation in the entire document."

Jeff also gave us a pic shot Thursday at the park, showing 2 very healthy looking tigers. He tells us all of his animals has a perfect body scale rating.

As we reported ... the USDA inspected the zoo this summer and found a bunch of problems -- including a razor-thin 16-week-old lion cub that could barely stand -- and suspended Lowe's license for 21 days.

Making matters worse, the feds claim Jeff's zoo doesn't keep good records of everything that's going on with the various animals.

The government wants an order declaring Lowe is in violation of federal law, and giving federal investigators immediate access to inspect the park ... to determine the condition of the animals.

A guy who wanted to chow down at an IHOP without a face covering wouldn't take "no mask, no service" for an answer -- because cops say he went to town on the staff with a knife.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... this wild incident went down Tuesday in Queens where surveillance video captured the horrifying scene. At first, you see the customer in the waiting area with another guy -- although, we're told there were at least 3 men who rolled in together.

Looks like a staffer's telling him to mask up, which seems to piss him off. He gets up to argue, and appears to leave the building -- but when the whole crew comes back, he's way more agitated.

The video shows the guy who allegedly refused to put on a mask storm back into the IHOP and charge past a table and other waiting customers ... apparently trying to get at someone off-camera.

While trying to get a hold of that person, the guy reaches over and grabs something from his friend -- cops say it was a knife -- and then chases some workers through the restaurant. Toward the end of the video, he actually swings at someone before booking it.

According to our sources, the man swung at a 40-year-old female employee and cut her arm, which required stitches.

DeAndre Baker has found a new football home after his armed robbery case was dropped ... he's reportedly set to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs in the coming days.

The cornerback -- who was cut from the NY Giants after he was hit with multiple felony charges stemming from his alleged role in a May 13 incident -- will visit K.C. this week and is set to ink a deal to join the team shortly after, according to multiple reports.

Baker is expected to begin his career as a Chief on the team's practice squad.

It's huge news for the 23-year-old former 2019 1st-round pick ... because just a few days ago, he was staring down LIFE IN PRISON.

We broke the story, Baker was accused of pulling out a semi-automatic firearm at a cookout in Miramar, FL. and ordering partygoers to give him their cash, watches and other valuables.

Baker was arrested and ultimately hit with multiple counts of robbery with a firearm.

But, prosecutors announced Monday they dropped all the charges after they say the alleged victims and witnesses in the case became "uncooperative" and had their credibility "inalterably tarnished."

Prosecutors claim it all stemmed from an attorney, William Dean, who represented 3 victims in the case.

"[Dean] was arrested for extortion related to soliciting a cash payout on behalf of the three men in exchange for altered testimony," prosecutors said.

Baker's attorney, Bradford Cohen, was thrilled with the prosecutors' decision ... telling TMZ Sports on Monday, "The result is the correct result in dismissing Deandre's case. We have been saying he was a victim of an extortion from day one."

Lil Wayne's just been hit with a federal weapons charge and could face serious prison time if convicted.

The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida has charged the rapper with 1 count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. Weezy -- who was convicted of a felony gun charge in NY back in 2009 -- faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

The charge is for a December 2019 incident where federal agents searched Wayne's plane at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport. He was a passenger on that plane, which made a stop in Florida on its way to California.

At the time ... Wayne's attorney, Howard Srebnick, had said his client was "cleared" to leave even though guns and drugs were reportedly found on the plane. It appears now the feds believe Wayne was wrongfully in possession of a weapon and ammunition.

Srebnick tells TMZ ... Carter was charged for possessing a gold-plated handgun in his luggage back in December. The lawyer says, "There is no allegation that he ever fired it, brandished it, used it or threatened to use it. There is no allegation that he is a dangerous person."

He added, "The charge is that because he was convicted of a felony in the past, he is prohibited from possessing a firearm."

This was no figment of Ed Norton's imagination ... cops shut down a REAL illegal fight club in New York over the weekend -- allegedly turning up guns, drugs and more.

The New York City Sheriff's Dept. raided a commercial warehouse on Coster Street on Saturday night -- discovering more than 200 people packed inside to watch amateur fights at an unlicensed event dubbed "Rumble in the Bronx!"

Officials say 10 people were arrested -- including a man suspected of organizing the event. That dude faces 8 criminal charges including unlawful assembly and conducting a prohibited combat sport.

Officials say cops also seized 2 handguns and a bunch of weed from the event.

Cops issued a statement saying inside the warehouse, they found patrons "drinking alcohol, smoking, hookah, and not wearing face coverings while failing to social distance."

So, bad enough they were at an illegal event -- worse, they were allegedly blowing off all COVID safety measures.

First rule of Fight Club, YOU CAN'T HAVE A FIGHT CLUB DURING A PANDEMIC!!

Ex-NY Giants CB DeAndre Baker is officially off the hook in his armed robbery case -- after some alleged funny business with the witnesses who initially said they saw him commit a crime at a cookout back in May.

As we previously reported, Baker -- along with Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar -- was arrested for allegedly robbing several people at gunpoint during a cookout in Miramar, FL.

Baker was initially charged with 4 counts of robbery with a firearm over the May 13 incident and was facing up to life in prison.

But Monday morning, prosecutors announced all charges against Baker have been dropped because of serious issues with the alleged victims and witnesses.

Prosecutors say three alleged victims had initially filed sworn statements "in which they asserted that three men committed a robbery with a firearm upon them and that Mr. Baker was one of the assailants."

Then, something changed ...

Prosecutors say, "the alleged victims and the known witnesses have become uncooperative and their credibility is inalterably tarnished."

In fact, prosecutors say they tried to have one witness held in contempt of court for refusing to answer questions.

And get this, prosecutors also say an attorney representing three of the alleged victims was arrested Monday morning for extortion "related to soliciting a cash payout on behalf of the three men in exchange for altered testimony."

In other words, officials believe the lawyer was helping his clients get money in exchange for changing their stories.

Prosecutors say the alleged victims ultimately recanted their initial claims -- that Baker was involved in the crime -- and most recently said that he was "present" at the cookout but did not rob or assault anyone.

Because of all the alleged shenanigans involving the victims and witnesses ... prosecutors have just decided to drop the case against Baker altogether -- seemingly because they realized they would not be able to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Baker -- who was drafted by NY in the 1st round of the 2019 NFL Draft -- was cut by the Giants back in September over his alleged role in the incident.

At the time, cops said witnesses told them Baker pulled out a semi-automatic firearm after a dispute at the cookout and directed Dunbar to start taking watches, cash and other valuables from partygoers.

Baker had denied the allegations through his attorney.

The 23-year-old has remained an NFL free agent while his case played out in the courts. It's unclear if he'll still face league discipline even with the charges being dropped Monday.