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Rapper T.I. Pleads Guilty To Firearms Charges
Rapper T.I. pled guilty to federal firearms charges last Thursday and received the deal of a lifetime. T.I. was already a convicted felon which bars him from owning any firearms under any circumstances. So when he was caught trying to purchase fully automatic machine guns with silencers in Atlanta some months back, he was looking at serious time.
He pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm, possession of machine guns and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Harris was arrested Oct. 13, just blocks away and hours before he was to headline the BET Hip-Hop Awards in Atlanta.
He was charged with possession of unregistered machine guns and silencers, as well as possession of firearms by a convicted felon. He faced a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.
The judge apparently felt that T.I. could do more for the community as a free man than beyond bars for decades and agreed to a sweet plea deal. In return for a guilty plea, T.I. must spend 1500 hours talking to kids about the perils of gangs, guns, and gangsters, followed up by 1 year in prison.
His prison time could be increased or reduced, depending on his fulfillment of the terms of the deal and good behavior, they said. If he acts right he could be back on the street in about 8 months, so all things considered T.I. is getting a second lease on life.
If he’s smart he’ll spend his year in prison writing a few new albums and then come out with some hit records. Let’s hope he makes the best of this legal miracle he’s been blessed with.
-Chris Jones
Rapper T.I. Arrested on Federal Gun Charges
Rapper T.I. (real name: Clifford Harris) was arrested in Atlanta Saturday afternoon by ATF agents on charges of buying illegal machine guns, just hours before he was scheduled to appear at the BET Awards show. Agents said the rapper was arrested as he accepted delivery of three machine guns and two silencers from a bodyguard. He is due in court Monday.
Shortly after his arrest a federal search warrant was executed on Harris’ home in College Park. While conducting the search of T.I.’s home agents allegedly discovered three rifles, two pistols and a revolver in a walk-in closet in Harris’ bedroom. Five of the six guns were loaded.
A total of 12 guns (and two silencers) were recovered during the arrest and subsequent searches.
The arrest was the result of an undercover operation by ATF agents that started on October 2, when agents learned an individual was seeking to buy machine guns without registering them.
That individual, an unnamed bodyguard for T.I., was arrested on Wednesday after purchasing three machine guns, two silencers and a pistol
After his arrest the buyer agreed to become a cooperating witness (Snitch) for the government following his revelation to arresting agents that he was purchasing the machine guns for his boss, Clifford Harris, who as a convicted felon is legally not permitted to own a firearm. The CW had been working as a bodyguard for T.I. for the past three months. As of now, T.I.’s attorney can’t reveal the bodyguard’s name.
“This convicted felon allegedly was trying to add several machine guns to an already large and entirely illegal arsenal of guns,” David E. Nahmias, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, said in a statement.
T.I. has since been informally charged with one federal felony count of possession of unregistered machine guns (and silencers) and two federal felony counts of possession of firearms by a convicted felon. He is currently being held in federal custody and will make his initial appearance in the United States Courthouse in Atlanta tomorrow (October 15th).
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