Weapons & Guns

Donald Trump has his own way of handling the civil unrest in Minneapolis, following the brutal cop killing of George Floyd -- he wants the looters shot.

True-to-form Trump tweeted his outrage, "....These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!"

That last threat -- "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" -- is lifted from a threat made by a former Miami police chief back in 1967 ... after brutal police practices resulted in civil unrest.

Now, check this out ... Twitter immediately tagged Trump's post, saying, "This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public's interest for the Tweet to remain accessible." Translation -- Trump's appalling, yet predictable, call to violence is irresponsible, but we need to know that's his mindset.

And, he all took an insulting, gratuitous shot at Minneapolis' Mayor, "I can’t stand back & watch this happen to a great American City, Minneapolis. A total lack of leadership. Either the very weak Radical Left Mayor, Jacob Frey, get his act together and bring the City under control, or I will send in the National Guard & get the job done right....."

Mayor Frey shot back, "Weakness is refusing to take responsibility for your own actions. Weakness is pointing your finger at somebody else during a time of crisis."

The George Floyd demonstrations are at a flashpoint -- some of the people protesting his death, at the hands of a police officer, have set fire to a Minneapolis police station

A massive fire broke out Thursday night at Minneapolis PD's 3rd Precinct ... about 3 miles away from where Floyd was killed. Rioters were seen cheering and setting off fireworks as the building was engulfed in flames.

The police station fire is just one of many that have broken out across the city during the third straight night of protests, looting and riots.

Reports say protestors forcibly entered the building and lit several fires inside. The Minnesota National Guard has been activated and 500 soldiers are on their way to the city. The police department appears to have evacuated the building, and the fire department has not responded.

Again, there are hundreds -- if not thousands -- of people clogging the surrounding streets.

Many people across the city expressed their anger after a news conference held by federal and Hennepin County prosecutors, where they did not announce any charges against the police officers involved in Floyd's death.

On Wednesday, several stores, including a Target and grocery story were hit by rioters and looters.

Colin Kaepernick's not here for peaceful protesting in the wake of George Floyd being killed by a cop, because he says civility led to his death ... so it's time to revolt.

The former NFL star is addressing critics of the unrest this week in Minneapolis ... and he says they just don't get it, because all the rational discussions have not stopped the horrendous killings of black men, so it's time to ramp up the protests and not worry about keeping the peace.

Kaepernick says in a tweet ... "When civility leads to death, revolting is the only logical reaction."

He adds ... "The cries for peace will rain down, and when they do, they will land on deaf ears, because your violence has brought this resistance."

The "your" here is obviously the police, and Colin suggests it's due time to respond to the violence with violence, saying ... "We have the right to fight back!"

As you know, Kaepernick's been outspoken about police brutality for years, and began silently protesting by taking a knee during The National Anthem while playing for the 49ers in 2016.

The move made him a lightning rod in the discussion of police brutality and the treatment of black people in America, and many believe it resulted in him being blackballed from the NFL.

Of course, the disturbing parallel of a cop kneeling on George Floyd's carotid artery with Kaepernick peacefully kneeling to protest such violence has not been lost on people.

A 21-year-old black man justifiably panicked when several cops pulled guns on him and repeatedly screamed, "Show me your hands" ... even though he was clearly already showing them.

The incident played out in Midland, Texas on May 16 but video of the arrest started circulating late last week. It's going viral now due to George Floyd's deadly arrest in Minneapolis, because it underscores the tense dynamic between African-Americans and police ... even during something as minor as running a stop sign.

The young man's name is Tye Anders and the video shows him get out of his car after pulling into his driveway. He immediately puts his hands up and begins repeatedly asking cops why they stopped him. Cops told him he ran a stop sign. Police were barking orders for him to put his hands up ... even though you can see his hands were up. Tye even dropped to his knees and laid on his stomach with his hands out.

Later in the video, you can hear Anders crying and telling cops he's scared before his 90-year-old grandmother walks out trying to defuse the situation. But, even then cops don't approach Anders ... as one officer can be heard asking if there's anyone else in the vehicle.

After Anders lies on the ground, you can hear cops telling him to stand up. Cops ultimately move in to make the arrest. There are erroneous reports the grandmother was tackled by cops, but you can see in the body cam footage she trips over Tye and is helped back up by cops.

Tye was ultimately arrested for evading arrest ... but the manner in which it went down has sparked controversy in Midland, where officials will hold a town hall meeting later Thursday to address it.

The video, of course, amplifies the panic black citizens feel even during routine traffic stops. As we've reported ... new surveillance video showed Floyd shows no signs of resisting during his arrest before he was killed by a cop pressing his knee on Floyd's neck.

It's really frightening ... a 2nd Amendment Kentucky rally the day before Memorial Day turned into an insane display of Governor Andy Beshear being hung in effigy.

It makes no sense, other than some gun-toting fanatics wanting to whip the crowd into a frenzy. Around 100 people swarmed the Governor's mansion to celebrate constitutional rights, as they packed heat.

It was billed as a Second Amendment rally ... "what it really means to be FREE."

Pastor Cliff Christman then launched on the Governor's coronavirus restrictions, grousing, "This has been one of the biggest shams in world history ... Grown men have been hiding in homes nearly wetting their pants over this invisible enemy that nobody sees. Where is it at?  Let it come out and face us."

Cliff Alexander was such a star H.S. basketball recruit ... one cop remembered him during the former NBA player's gun arrest this month -- and the interaction was all caught on police video obtained by TMZ Sports.

Alexander was pulled over at around 9:30 PM CT on May 6 in Chicago, Ill. after cops say he blew through a stop sign ... and shortly after, one officer realized who exactly he had detained.

"Oh, you're that hooper!" the cop said, before asking him about his high school recruiting ranking.

FYI -- Alexander was largely considered the top prospect in the country back in the 2014 recruiting class ... right alongside future Duke Blue Devil Jahlil Okafor.

In the video, you can hear the officer actually asks Alexander about the battle for the No. 1 spot with Okafor ... and the interaction is kind of funny.

"I remember that sh*t!" the cop said. "That's crazy! ... You went to Kansas, right!?"

Of course, the stop didn't go so well for Alexander outside of that convo ... cops say the 24-year-old illegally had a loaded firearm under his seat, which one officer said appeared to be a "Glock 21."

Alexander also admitted to cops during the stop he had "like 6 grams" of weed on him ... and you can see in video, he explained to an officer he stuffed it in his pants because "I'm paranoid."

Eventually, Alexander was arrested and booked on a felony charge of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. He was also hit with a citation for failing to stop at a stop sign -- but he was NOT booked on drug charges.

William "Roddie" Bryan, the man who recorded the video of Ahmaud Arbery's killing, is now the third suspect to be arrested for the young man's murder.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation just announced the arrest, saying Bryan's been hit with charges of felony murder and criminal attempt to commit false imprisonment.

The GBI says the charges stem from the February 23 incident that resulted in Arbery's death. Bryan will be booked into the Glynn County Jail.

As we reported ... Roddie claimed he was simply a witness to the slaying and had zero involvement with what went down between Arbery and the 2 men previously arrested for his murder -- Gregory and Travis McMichael.

Bryan said after his video leaked online that he was fearful for his life and was receiving death threats. The GBI said Bryan and his video were under investigation, and he was initially named in the police report for allegedly trying to block Ahmaud during the chase while he was jogging. Bryan denied any involvement, though.

As we told you ... Arbery's family and legal team strongly believed Bryan was involved in the incident, along with the McMichaels, and wants him to face justice.

Sheck Wes is facing 2 felony charges after getting busted in NYC ... where cops say he was toting a gun and drugs around town in his fancy whip.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Sheck was driving a 2019 Lamborghini SUV with 3 friends when he was pulled over early Wednesday morning in Harlem for excessive window tint.

Our sources say the car reeked of marijuana which prompted a search -- and officers found a loaded 9mm Smith & Wesson pistol in a bag, and a small amount of weed.

We're told prosecutors charged Sheck and another passenger with 2 felonies -- criminal possession of a loaded firearm and criminal possession of a weapon ... and Sheck and his co-defendant were arraigned and released without bail. They did not charge him for the pot.

Our sources say the "Mo Bamba" rapper was also cited for not having a driver's license.

Luke Hill -- one of the top recruits in Oregon's 2020 football class -- was arrested this week ... after he allegedly attempted to murder his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend.

FYI, 18-year-old Hill is of the one best high school cornerbacks in the country. He signed his National Letter of Intent with Oregon months ago ... but the school says they parted ways in the spring. They have not explained why they parted ways, but they're probably glad they did now, based on the allegations.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, cops say they responded to a call of a shooting in Prince George's County, Md. -- near where Hill played his high school ball -- at around 7:30 p.m. on Monday.

While on the scene ... cops say the victim told them he was playing basketball when a white car with window tint pulled up and fired on him.

Fortunately, cops say the victim told them nobody was injured by the gunshots ... and went on to say his girlfriend had received menacing messages from Hill -- whom she had had a prior relationship with -- just an hour or so before the incident.

According to the docs, the victim explained Hill had messaged his GF about their relationship and had stated he was "trying to find out where the victim lives."

Cops say when they went to Hill's home after they wrapped up investigating at the victim's ... they saw Hill pull up in a white vehicle that matched the victim's description -- and after they detained him, they obtained a warrant to search the house.

That's when officers say they recovered three firearms from Hill's residence ... including a Glock 22 handgun that was located in a hidden compartment in Hill's bedroom, behind Univ. of Oregon football recruiting letters.

Officers say the caliber of fired shell casings they recovered at the victim's residence matched the gun in Hill's room ... and they arrested the football player shortly after.

In Hill's mug shot, obtained by TMZ Sports, you can see the guy wasn't exactly a happy camper.

Prosecutors have since hit the 5'11", 175-pound defensive back with EIGHT charges ... including felony first-degree attempted murder and felony assault.

The Univ. of Oregon has told multiple media outlets Wednesday it had parted ways with the football player earlier this spring prior to the arrest... despite receiving his National Letter of Intent earlier in the recruiting cycle.

Actor Hagen Mills is dead in Kentucky after he apparently shot a woman and then turned the gun on himself ... TMZ has learned.

Mills -- who had roles on the TV series' "Baskets" and "Swedish Dicks" -- died Tuesday in the town of Mayfield ... according to his mother. She tells us he'd been living in Hollywood for several years, but still had a home in Mayfield.

The shooting reportedly left one man dead and a woman injured. Mayfield's Police Chief Nathan Kent confirmed investigators believe it was an attempted murder-suicide in which the man, Hagen, was the shooter.

The woman was reportedly taken to the hospital but survived the shooting. It's unclear what her relationship was with Hagen.

The owner of the Byrn Funeral Home in Mayfield tells us they've been in touch with Hagen's family and will be handling his service.

Along with his small TV roles, the actor costarred in an Indie film called "Star Light," which was released in February. His mother says tells us Hagen loved acting, but his true passion was his 4-year-old daughter.

He was 29.

Cops are NOT in possession of video showing Deandre Baker and Quinton Dunbar robbing people at gunpoint at a cookout in FL ... but investigators are scouring the neighborhood hoping to find something ASAP.

Multiple people involved in the investigation had told us they were confident there was video from the May 13 incident -- but a spokesperson for the Broward County State Attorney's Office tells us straight-up there's no video, "not that I'm aware of."

One person involved in the case tells us cops are making an effort to speak with people in the vicinity to find out if the incident was captured on home surveillance video, including Ring doorbell cameras ... and no, TMZ Sports has not seen any video of the incident either.

As we previously reported, Baker is facing 8 felony charges including armed robbery and aggravated assault -- while Dunbar is facing 4 counts of aggravated assault.

Both men claim they have multiple witnesses who say they did not rob anyone at gunpoint. Meanwhile, both men are out on bond, awaiting their next court date.

The issue ... cops say they spoke with multiple witnesses on the night of the incident who fingered Baker as the shot caller in a brazen armed robbery.

One witness told cops Baker ordered a third man, who was wearing a red mask, to shoot another partygoer.

Cops say Baker, Dunbar and the unidentified third man fled the scene in exotic getaway cars with more than $12,000 in cash and $60,000 in expensive watches.

Both the Giants and Seahawks have said they are aware of the allegations ... and are doing their own investigations into the matter.

Video of Ahmaud Arbery getting frisked and patted down by cops in 2017 might say a lot about Glynn County PD's attitude toward black people ... keeping in mind Gregory McMichael was once a member of that force.

The video shows 2 officers questioning Ahmaud after finding him alone in his car, in a Brunswick, GA park in November 2017. The officers asked to search his car, and the scene got intense when he said no and stepped toward his car. The officers immediately told him to stop and get his hands out of his pockets.

Despite the fact Ahmaud immediately obeyed their orders -- and had his hands in the air -- one officer pulled his taser and fired it. Now, the weapon malfunctioned, but Ahmaud was already getting down on the ground anyway.

About two minutes earlier, the officers had asked for ID, and Ahmaud complied and explained he'd been rapping in his car on his day off. When the officer came back with his license, Ahmaud said, "I ain't got s**t on me. What the f**k you f**king with me for?"

The officer told him the area was known for drug activity and then proceeded to frisk Ahmaud for weapons. He had nothing on him, and there was nothing illegal about him parking in the area.

Still, the officer wanted to search his car ... and that's when the attempted-tasing went down ... despite the fact, they already knew he had no weapon on him.

He was not arrested or cited for anything.

The question now ... is the video, first obtained by the Guardian, relevant to Ahmaud's murder? You could argue it shows the Glynn County PD harassing a young black man who was guilty of nothing more than sitting in his car.

Of course, one of his accused murderers, Gregory McMichael, is a retired detective with GCPD, who we know now told police to have at least one resident contact him directly if there was any sign of an intruder.

On the other hand, this police stop -- harassment or not -- is a completely different situation from what Ahmaud faced on February 23 ... when 2 armed white men, Gregory and his son, Travis McMichael, ambushed him in the middle of a road.

Shocking new details in the arrest of Cody Latimer ... cops say a witness claimed the NFL player threatened to "kill everybody" after a dispute over a poker game -- this according to court docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

Cops arrived at a Douglas County, CO residence around midnight Friday, the docs show, after they received a call about possible shots fired.

Once they showed up ... officers say in the docs they interviewed Latimer's friend, Roderick English, who explained to them the Washington Redskins receiver snapped after an argument over a card game.

Cops say English told them he was playing host to a poker night at his place with his GF, Latimer and a few other buddies ... when Latimer got into a dispute with another person.

English claims he broke up the altercation and booted everybody out ... but told cops Cody showed up a half-hour later, pissed off.

Cops say English told them Latimer pulled out a firearm and said he had saved two rounds of ammunition for English and his GF. Cops also say English told them Latimer threatened to "kill everybody."

English told officers Latimer calmed down ... said he wouldn't kill anyone and "removing the magazine and clearing the chamber" of his gun.

But, according to the docs, Latimer grew angry again ... and that's when English says Latimer fired two shots near him.

Cops say English told them he then wrestled with Latimer ... but claims the 27-year-old hit him on the head with the gun, causing a contusion and a cut on his head.

Ultimately, the altercation was broken up ... and officers arrested Cody, booking him on several felony charges, including assault and illegal discharge of a firearm.

For his part, Cody's attorney said in a statement to ESPN's Adam Schefter regarding the incident, "There’s an entire back story to this situation that constitutes one of the most highly provocative situations you can imagine. Please withhold judgment until all the facts of what took place that night are known."

Latimer, who was a second-round pick of the Denver Broncos in 2014, has a court hearing set for Monday in the case.

Hope Solo claims some gun-toting maniac shot one of her dogs Wednesday night -- but the good news, the pooch survived the attack.

It all went down North Carolina, where the former Team USA soccer superstar lives with her husband, ex-NFL player Jerramy Stevens.

"Our magnificent dog Conan (brown, on the far left) is in critical condition after being shot last night," Hope says.

"It’s hard news to share, but harder to make sense of this heinous act."

"Jerramy and I are shocked and heartbroken, but we want to say thank you to Wilkes Veterinary Hospital and their staff for rushing Conan into emergency care, as well as their COVID-19 care practices."

We're reaching out to police to find out what the hell happened and if they've identified a suspect.

In the meantime, Hope is optimistic about Conan's chances -- saying, "We‘ve heard that there are developments in canine prosthetics and would love any information about getting Conan a new front leg!"

Get well, Conan!!!!

Pop Smoke's murder remains unsolved, and the coronavirus pandemic is doing detectives no favors ... severely hindering progress in the investigation.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... response to COVID-19 and related issues has been LAPD's top priority the past 2 months, meaning less time and resources available to focus on the rapper's killer.

When detectives are able to investigate, we're told they still try to go out and safely speak face-to-face with people in an attempt to gather evidence ... but that's been a challenge already in this case.

As we first told you ... cops were running into witness issues in the case, as people were either refusing to talk about Pop's death or providing unreliable info.

On a more positive note ... our sources say investigators are hoping the rapper's upcoming posthumous debut album will renew interest in the case, get people talking, and drum up tips and new leads.

TMZ broke the story ... Pop Smoke was gunned down in February at a house owned by 'RHOBH' star Teddi Mellencamp.

It appears the murder was a targeted hit and not an armed robbery gone awry, but law enforcement's still puzzled over the motive.