Rapper Busta Rhymes was arrested and taken into custody Saturday in connection with an Aug. 12 assault of a man who allegedly spat on his car near Gramercy Park.
The rapper, whose real name is Trevor Smith, was arraigned Sunday on a charge of third-degree assault and was released on his own recognizance after spending a night in jail, said Barbara Thompson, spokeswoman for the Manhattan district attorney's office. He is due back in court Oct. 24.
According to the New York Daily News, the victim, identified as Roberto Lebron, was allegedly stomped and suffered a concussion, a split lip and an injured wrist at the hands of Rhymes. The artist was picked up by police around 8 p.m. Saturday night following a performance at the Heineken AmsterJam Festival on New York’s Randalls Island.
He was taken to the 13th Precinct stationhouse, where investigators not only questioned him about the alleged assault, but reportedly grilled him on the Feb. 5 slaying of his bodyguard Israel Ramirez.
A police source told the paper of Busta: "I don't know if this is normally something he would even be arrested for. But his bouncer was killed and he didn't want to cooperate. This is our way of dealing with it."
Rhymes has refused to talk to police about the altercation at his Brooklyn video shoot that led to the shooting death of 29-year-old Ramirez. A secret tape recording of the argument preceding the shooting indicates Rhymes witnessed the slaying and contains the voice of the gunman calling the rap star a "bitch" before pulling the trigger, reports the Daily News.
Police believe that G-Unit member, Tony Yayo, sparked the fight, then fled the scene with the suspected killer.
The rapper, whose real name is Trevor Smith, was arraigned Sunday on a charge of third-degree assault and was released on his own recognizance after spending a night in jail, said Barbara Thompson, spokeswoman for the Manhattan district attorney's office. He is due back in court Oct. 24.
According to the New York Daily News, the victim, identified as Roberto Lebron, was allegedly stomped and suffered a concussion, a split lip and an injured wrist at the hands of Rhymes. The artist was picked up by police around 8 p.m. Saturday night following a performance at the Heineken AmsterJam Festival on New York’s Randalls Island.
He was taken to the 13th Precinct stationhouse, where investigators not only questioned him about the alleged assault, but reportedly grilled him on the Feb. 5 slaying of his bodyguard Israel Ramirez.
A police source told the paper of Busta: "I don't know if this is normally something he would even be arrested for. But his bouncer was killed and he didn't want to cooperate. This is our way of dealing with it."
Rhymes has refused to talk to police about the altercation at his Brooklyn video shoot that led to the shooting death of 29-year-old Ramirez. A secret tape recording of the argument preceding the shooting indicates Rhymes witnessed the slaying and contains the voice of the gunman calling the rap star a "bitch" before pulling the trigger, reports the Daily News.
Police believe that G-Unit member, Tony Yayo, sparked the fight, then fled the scene with the suspected killer.
