A federal judge in Los Angeles ruled Tuesday that defendant CRIPS leader Eugene “Big U” Henley will remain in jail while facing allegations of fraud, robbery, ransomware and operating a blackmail plot.
Just as Henley, 58, quietly wore a white jumpsuit, U.S. District Court Judge A. Joel Richlin cited allegations of violence against him, including the murder of an aspiring rapper, and what he called “a lot of evidence that impedes justice.”
Richlin ordered Henley to continue the trial in custody, saying Henley could run away and he could pose a danger to the community.
“There is no condition or combination of conditions that can reasonably ensure Mr. Henry's future appearance in court proceedings or the safety of the community,” Richlin said ahead of Friday's ruling.
Henley's attorney Arturo Hernandez said his client could be confined to his home and monitored electronically. He also cited the fact that his client’s loved ones were offering millions of dollars in property released, which he said made it unlikely that Henry would escape.
“You have to give him a chance,” said Hernandez, who represents the cartel member, who in the 1980s, serial killer Richard Ramirez, known as the “Night Walker.”
“This is the defendant's second chance,” the US assistant. Kevin Butler told the judge soon after.
Henley has been jailed for 13 years for attempting to rob a 33-pound cocaine sheriff's deputy. Last month, he was indicted on 43 counts, including tax evasion; donating to his charity, which received public funds; and running a blackmail plot where he was allegedly kidnapped and fatally shot a young rapper named Rayshawn Williams.
Henry pleaded not guilty to all charges. And, before handing in, he made a video denied the accusation against him and said, “I did nothing.”
“I’m just helping our community,” Henry said in the video. “It’s the price of black people and trying to help someone, trying to help your community and doing their best.”
After the hearing, Hernandez said he planned to appeal the judge's ruling. Henley's wife attended the hearing Tuesday, sometimes wiping her tears and refusing to comment.
Federal authorities say Henley helped launch his career as rapper Nipsey Hussle, who created his image as an entrepreneur in the entertainment industry and has given back to the community. They said, but behind the scenes is another story.
“It's the most dangerous person in Los Angeles in today's courtroom,” Butler said during the detention hearing. “The allegations in this case … prove that this is an accurate description.”
“He was also the most dangerous person in the case because his entire criminal business is based on fear, intimidation, control,” the court that Butler released Henley said.
“Control the victim, the enemy's control, the witness's control, the control of Los Angeles,” Butler said.
In federal complaints, authorities compared Henry's “large corporations” to a “mafia-like” organization, relying on his “high-studded and long-term connections with Rolling's '60s and other street gangs to threaten businesses and individuals in Los Angeles” to intimidate businesses and individuals,” as many as a dozen suspected cases of '60s crips or colleagues, including Henley, and Henley.
In a brief submission before the detention hearing, federal authorities noted: “To avoid custody, the defendant will undoubtedly continue his double deal, as he did to celebrities and donors, who went out of his way to believe that they are helping young, poor athletes pursue their dreams when they are actually overwhelmed by the defendant’s bag after the donation because he is the donation.
“Even in a short time, he was able to grasp his old tricks and once again try to use some of these celebrities for personal gain,” the administration claimed. “He even suggested that he could manipulate the U.S. president to intervene and abandon the charges even if he also sent the president as an “orange man” while in custody.
In a series of alleged crimes, federal authorities accused Henry of instructing the robbery of the unlicensed La Marijuana pharmacy, which stopped extortion payments and fraudulently obtained funds from the gang reduction and youth development program supervised by the La Mayor office.
Although Butler acknowledged at the hearing that Williams’ murder was “more an indirect case,” he believes the rest of the evidence and allegations “can’t be seriously objected.” He told the judge that the alleged blackmail was captured on video, audio and telephone, embezzlement of public funds, charitable fraud and tax crimes have been “recorded”.
Butler told the judge that Henry turned off his cell phone and fled his home the night before his arrest.
“One of the potential witnesses of some of his crimes actually asked the government, 'If you can't even arrest him, how can you guarantee to make sure I'm safe?'” “It's a reasonable question and if it's released on bail, it's going to intensify.”
A dozen of Henry's family and friends attended the court Tuesday afternoon, and when prosecutors played a video made by Henley before surrendering to authorities, they listened, blaming people for posting his case on social media. He blames Christopher Lovejoy, a boxer named “600” who is in the front row.
But Butler denied Henry's claims, saying: “None of these people talked to the team's law enforcement officers.”
Tensions are getting higher and higher before the hearing. Henry's family faced 600 people, questioning why he was in court and whether he was there to testify. They accused Lovejoy of having over 100,000 Instagram followers and being disrespectful Henley.
“I’m here to support it,” he told his family.
“WHO?” asked a woman who is sure she is Henry's sister.
“Court,” he replied.
When 600 people walked into the courtroom, he sat in the front row and said to Henry, “How are you, man?” Henry did not respond or respond.
At the hearing, Hernandez called the government's case “anspoken” and “speculation work.” He praised his client for turning himself to the authorities and said it showed Henry was “innocence”.
“What the government has to do is throw a bunch of things on the wall and see what sticks are there,” Hernandez said.
Once, Richlin asked Henry if he was okay. Henley, who was cramping in front of him, told the judge: “I feel a lot of pressure.”
When Richlin ruled the ruling, he called the indictment “very broad” and said: “The court does believe there is a lot of evidence, lengthy evidence, and it is not the film industry in the indictment.”
