James Rosemond, the music industry mogul accused by a convict of paying to have Tupac Shakur shot and robbed in November of 1994, was arrested at a Manhattan hotel yesterday for charges of trafficking cocaine between Los Angeles and New York City. Rosemond, who runs Czar Entertainment and manages acts such as Sean Kingston and the Game, has been investigated by federal authorities for the alleged drug trafficking since 2009. He appeared in a Brooklyn federal court yesterday, but has not entered a plea.
Rosemond's attorneys have denied a claim made by convicted killer Dexter Isaac that the mogul had paid him $2,500 to attack Shakur at Manhattan's Quad Studios in 1994. Though the rapper survived the shooting, the incident set off a chain reaction of violent reprisals that led to the eventual murder of Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G., who was originally blamed for the assault. Rosemond is unlikely to be charged in connection to the attack since the statute of limitations for assault in New York State has expired.
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