Rapper Pooh Shiesty was arrested this month and held without bond on federal gun and robbery charges, the Justice Department reported.
A magistrate judge in Miami ordered the rapper to be held in a federal detention center as he awaits a trial after he participated in a street altercation where two men were shot. He will most likely be held in federal custody until his trial later in 2021. It is unknown if he has an attorney.
In October 2020, Pooh Shiesty – real name Lontrell Williams – accompanied by Bobby Brown and Jayden Darosa, drove into a parking lot of a Miami hotel to buy marijuana and a pair of expensive sneakers from the two men.
The defendants allegedly carried semi-automatic firearms and shot the men during the illegal transaction. They allegedly fled the scene with the sneakers and marijuana that they never paid for. They attempted to buy several ounces of marijuana and they had the money to purchase it, so it’s unclear why they decided to steal it instead.
They allegedly shot the men in the hip and the rear end. Williams also allegedly used a Draco subcompact machine gun. These firearms are highly regulated and police did not know how the men came in possession of a machine gun.
Federal agents also found a Louis Vuitton bag that had more than $40,000 in it at the scene. They said that Williams showed the designer bag on Instagram a few days before the robbery. One of the $100 dollar bills in the bag had the same serial number that was on the social media feed.
There also were pictures posted on Instagram by Williams that showed him in a vehicle that looked like the rented green McLaren car that left the crime scene and was recorded on surveillance video.
Federal investigators used images on the Instagram account to obtain the federal indictment. While the pictures that show him holding a large amount of cash are still on Instagram, the photos most relevant to the case were deleted.
A few days before the alleged crime, there were images on Instagram of the rapper holding long rifles and dozens of $100 bills.
Each of the men is charged with conspiring to possess firearms to commit a violent crime, conspiring to commit a Hobbs Act robbery, and discharging a firearm to commit a violent crime.
All of the alleged crimes were captured on video, so the odds are in favor of the men being convicted of these serious federal charges.
Rapper Also Charged For Shooting Security Guard
The rapper also is facing another federal charge from Memorial Day weekend where he may have shot a security guard at a nightclub.
The security guard told the police that he was trying to take Williams out of the nightclub after his show, and someone tried to grab bills out of his back pocket. This allegedly upset Williams and he went back on stage to find out who had touched him. Witnesses said it appeared that someone tried to take hundreds of dollars out of Williams’ pocket.
The security guard then told the police at the scene that he saw a gun in William’s waistband and he tried to tell him to not take it out. He said that he tried to take Williams safely from the building again but Williams turned around and fire a shot, which hit the guard in the ankle. Fortunately, the injury was not serious and the security guard is expected to have a full recovery.
He told the police that Williams allegedly handed the gun to someone else and they both left the scene. Witnesses said they left in a vehicle but it was too dark to get a description.
Police said a few days after the Memorial Day incident that Williams had left Florida after the victim pointed him out in a police lineup. At that point, they began to extradite him back to Florida.
Williams is a 2021 BET Awards nominee for Best New Artist.
Rapper Crunchy Black Says Williams Belongs In Jail
Pooh Shiesty is still locked up in a Miami jail and rapper Crunchy Black says that’s where he belongs. He said he thinks Williams was involved in the Miami shooting in October. Black criticized Williams for being only 21 and just getting started in rap and he’s already shooting and robbing people. Black also said the young rapper should focus on his career and stay out of trouble.
He also said that no one should use the word ‘allegedly’ about Williams being involved in the shooting. He said it’s obvious on video that it was Williams, and that he is going to do hard time for what he did.
Williams faces up to 20 years for each of the federal charges.