BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Rapper NBA YoungBoy has agreed to plead guilty to a federal weapons charge once the case is transferred from Louisiana to Utah, where he faces unrelated charges accusing him of running a prescription drug fraud ring.
In court documents filed last week, the rapper, whose real name is Kentrell Gaulden, waived his right to a trial in Baton Rouge, news outlets reported. U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick then closed the Louisiana case and moved jurisdiction to the federal court in Salt Lake City. Gaulden also signed notice of his intent to enter his guilty plea once the case is transferred to Utah.
Prosecutors allege Gaulden, a convicted felon, had a handgun while shooting a music video in Baton Rouge in 2020. He was among 15 people arrested after more than a dozen guns were seized from the video set. Gaulden, 24, of Baton Rouge, faces up to 10 years in prison in the weapons’ case, federal prosecutors have said.
The move gives the federal government jurisdiction to prosecute Gaulden in Utah where he was charged earlier this year with more than 60 felony counts tied to a “large scale prescription fraud ring.”
Gaulden had been living in Utah on house arrest while awaiting his Louisiana trial. Since May 10, he's been held without bond at the Weber County Jail, north of Salt Lake City, awaiting trial in the drug case.
NBA YoungBoy, who also is known as YoungBoy Never Broke Again, has achieved four No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 and one Top-10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. His music includes “38 Baby,” “Outside Today” and Tyler, The Creator's song, “Wusyaname,” on which he is featured with Ty Dolla $ign. That collaboration earned them a Grammy nomination in 2022 for Best Melodic Rap Performance.
FILE - Kentrell Gaulden, also known as NBA YoungBoy, arrives for a hearing in 1st District Court, on May 9, 2024, in Logan, Utah. (Eli Lucero/The Herald Journal via AP, File)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A man suspected in an apparent assassination attempt targeting former President Donald Trump was charged Monday with federal gun crimes, making his first court appearance in the final weeks of a White House race already touched by violence.
Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, faces charges of possessing a firearm despite being a convicted felon and possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number. Additional and more serious charges are possible as the investigation continues and prosecutors seek an indictment from a grand jury.
Routh appeared briefly in federal court in West Palm Beach, where he answered perfunctory questions about his work status and income. Shackled and wearing a blue jumpsuit, he smiled as he spoke with a public defender and reviewed documents ahead of his initial appearance. The lawyer declined to comment after the court appearance.
The episode occurred Sunday afternoon when Secret Service agents stationed a few holes up from where Trump was playing golf noticed the muzzle of an AK-style rifle sticking through the shrubbery that lines the course, roughly 400 yards away.
An agent fired and Routh dropped the rifle and fled in an SUV, leaving the firearm behind along with two backpacks, a scope used for aiming and a GoPro camera, authorities said. Routh was later stopped by law enforcement in a neighboring county.
It was the second apparent assassination attempt targeting Trump in as many months.
On July 13, a bullet grazed Trump's ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Eight days later, Democratic President Joe Biden withdrew from the race, giving way for Vice President Kamala Harris to become the party’s nominee.
Tucker, Durkin Richer and Long reported from Washington.
Officers with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's office work outside of Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
A vehicle with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's office is parked outside of Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Law enforcement officials work outside of Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
An FBI officer works outside of Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
An FBI officer works outside of Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
The Trump International Golf Club is shown, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
An FBI officer works outside of Trump International Golf Club after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
The Trump International Golf Club is shown after the apparent assassination attempt of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
The Trump International Golf Club is shown, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
