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T.I. Arrested On Gun Charges Before BET Awards
Monday, October 15, 2007 By: Kenny Rodriguez
T.I. was arrested on federal gun charges just hours before he was scheduled to perform at the BET Hip-Hop Awards on Saturday, according to authorities, and he is scheduled for a court hearing later today.
The 27-year-old rapper, born Clifford Harris, was arrested in a federal sting after his bodyguard-turned-informant delivered three machine guns and two silencers to him, as detailed in a Justice Department statement.
Authorities said that Harris gave the bodyguard $12,000 to buy the weapons, which Harris is not allowed to own because he is a convicted felon – stemming from a 1998 conviction on drug charges.
T.I.’s car and home in College Park, Georgia were searched following his arrest, and detectives say they found three more firearms in the vehicle which he drove to pick up the machine guns and silencers.
At his home, authorities found six other guns, five of them loaded, in his bedroom closet.
The sting came after Harris’ bodyguard was arrested on Wednesday for purchasing the weapons from an undercover agent of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The unnamed bodyguard then agreed to cooperate with the ATF, according to authorities, and he also admitted he had bought about nine guns for the rap star in the past.
On Wednesday, Harris reportedly arranged for the bodyguard to pick up $12,000 in cash from a bank to buy the guns.
Harris was supposed to pick up the guns after meeting him in an Atlanta shopping center parking lot. Authorities arrested Harris there without incident.
Harris was held in federal custody over the weekend and will appear today before a court judge.
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