The U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday that American rapper Lontrell "Pooh Shiesty" Williams and seven additional people have been arrested on allegations of robbery and armed kidnapping involving music industry figures.
In its statement, the department listed a victim using the initials R.D., a detail that has led media outlets to report that Radric Davis, the rapper known as Gucci Mane, was one of the individuals taken. The DOJ said eight of the nine suspects identified in the investigation have been apprehended, and that one remains at large.
According to the department's account, the incident took place in January when three music industry professionals traveled to Dallas, Texas, for a planned business meeting. The DOJ said the meeting - set up by Williams - was intended to address the terms of his recording contract with one of the alleged victims.
Once the visitors were inside a recording studio, the DOJ alleged that Williams produced an AK-style pistol and carried out what it described as "a coordinated armed takeover." The department said one of the victims was forced at gunpoint to sign a release from the contract, and that other attendees were robbed of Rolex watches, jewelry, cash and additional items.
The DOJ's statement also noted that Pooh Shiesty's father is among the individuals charged. The department did not provide further identifying details about the alleged victims beyond the initials it supplied.
Both Gucci Mane and Pooh Shiesty are affiliated with Atlantic Records. The DOJ statement noted that Pooh Shiesty is signed to Gucci Mane's 1017 label, which was established at Atlantic in 2007.
Representatives for both men did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The announcement of the arrests follows Pooh Shiesty's recent release from prison after he pleaded guilty to firearms and drug charges.
Context and implications
The DOJ's allegations lay out a sequence in which a contractual negotiation became the backdrop for a violent criminal incident, according to the department's account. The matter remains subject to ongoing investigation and prosecution, and public details have been limited to the department's filing and the identities referenced by initials.