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50 Cent 'concerned' NYPD commander 'told officers to shoot him on sight'

The Deputy Inspector reportedly claimed the remark was intended as 'a joke' 

Jacob Stolworthy,Roisin O'Connor
Monday 18 February 2019 07:36 GMT
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50 Cent sets fire to his Gucci clothes

The New York Police Department is investigating a claim that a precinct commander allegedly told officers to shoot 50 Cent “on sight” during a roll call in his station house.

According to reports, Deputy Inspector Emanuel Gonzalez made the remark in June 2017 at a morning roll-call for a boxing event in the Bronx. New York Daily News reports that Gonzales tried to pass the comment off as “”a joke”.

It emerges that Gonzales was reported to NYPD Internal Affairs by at least one officer in attendance. CNN now reports that an investigation is ongoing.

Roy Richter, president of the NYPD Captains Endowment Association, called the allegations against Gonzalez “completely false”.

“It was 50 Cent who put the safety of the Inspector and his family in jeapardy by publishing a threatening tweet that called for violence last year,” he said in a statement, referring to a since-deleted social media post that allegedly appeared to threaten a police officer.

After waking up to the news, 50 Cent – real name Curtis Jackson – expressed his outrage on Instagram, writing: “I am concerned that I was not previously advised of this threat by the NYPD.”

He continued: “I take this threat very seriously and im consulting with my legal counsel regarding my options moving forward.

The rapper and Power actor, who called Gonzales a “dirty cop”, has previous with the commander. One month before Gonzalez’s alleged comment, he filed an aggravated harassment complaint against Jackson after he posted about a $125m lawsuit filed by Brooklyn club owner Imran Jairam.

Jairam alleges that Gonzales had targeted the club – which has since shut down after losing its liquor licence – as part of an NYPD harassment scheme, and Jackson referenced the case in a post that used the catchphrase “get the strap”, which is slang for gun.No charges were filed.

Gonzales is a veteran officer of 30 years and remains on active duty.

50 Cent’s representatives have repeated his comments as a statement: “Mr Jackson takes this threat very seriously and is consulting with his legal counsel regarding his options going forward.

“He is concerned that he was not previously advised of this threat by the NYPD and even more concerned that Gonzalez continues to carry a badge and a gun.”

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