NYPD announces 250 illegal firearms seized, 19 arrested in gun ring that stretched into South (The biggest gun bust in city history netted more than 250 firearms, 19 arrests)

NYPD announces 250 illegal firearms seized, 19 arrested in gun ring that stretched into South

An unnamed undercover cop bought the weapons from two Southern weapons runners, leading to their arrest along with 17 accomplices, officials said Monday at a press conference with Mayor Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly.

By Barry Paddock / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Published: Monday, August 19, 2013, 8:28 AM

Updated: Tuesday, August 20, 2013, 5:14 AM

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News

NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly and OCCB Chief Thomas Purtell examine seized weapons at the press conference at Police Plaza, including this Mach 10 with silencer.

The biggest gun bust in city history netted more than 250 firearms, 19 arrests and a wiretap where a suspect says he fears stop-and-frisk, officials said Monday.
A lone undercover cop bought the weapons over the last year from two Southern weapons runners, leading to their arrest along with 17 accomplices, officials said Monday.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

In addition to all of the guns seized, 19 people were arrested it was announced Monday.

"Thank God these guns are off the streets," Mayor Bloomberg said at Police Headquarters, surrounded by law enforcement officials and standing before two tables filled with dozens of firearms, including military-grade automatic weapons.
"There is no doubt that the seizure of these guns has saved lives."

Photo by Todd Maisel/New York Daily News

Stats on the roundup from the gun ring.

NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly heaped praise on the unnamed undercover detective, who did not appear at the news conference in order to protect his identity and ongoing work.
"More than 200 guns is an astonishing number to recover by one undercover," Kelly said.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

'There is no doubt that the seizure of these guns has saved lives,' Mayor Bloomberg said Monday morning at the press conference.

RELATED: NEW YORK'S TOUGH GUN LAWS ARE WEAKENED BY OTHER STATES
Both Bloomberg and Kelly seized upon a comment from suspect Earl Campbell of Rock Hill, S.C., who was caught on wiretap saying he didn't want to bring guns to Brooklyn for fear they would be discovered if he were stopped and frisked.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

More than 200 guns were seized by New York’s Finest, a number Commissioner Raymond Kelly called 'astonishing.'

"I'm in Brownsville," Kelly quoted Campbell as saying. "We got like, umm, uh, whatchamacallit, stop and frisk."
Bloomberg credited the city's stop-and-frisk laws with taking 8,000 guns off the street.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

The firearms seized include military-grade weapons such as a fully automatic MAC-11 pistol with a silencer as large as the gun.

A federal judge found components of the practice unconstitutional and ordered major changes last week.
The gun-sales case began a year ago when an unrelated narcotics investigation uncovered evidence that aspiring Brooklyn rapper Matthew Best, 26, was selling weapons out of his makeshift Ocean Hill recording studio.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

One of the rifles confiscated had a laser-dot sight attached and a suppressor on the front that eliminates flash and smoke to make it harder to tell where the gunman is firing from.

Best even alluded to the sales on Instagram and YouTube, Kelly said.

RELATED: NEW YORK CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMISSIONER RAY KELLY BLASTS STOP-AND-FRISK RULING

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

A SKS semi-automatic Soviet-era rifle that will ‘go through a project door, through the next door, through a wall, through the next wall into the next apartment,’ a source says.

The investigation into Best led law enforcement to focus on Brooklyn gun broker, Adeji Omole, 31. Omole was buying guns from two men running unrelated but strikingly similar operations from the Carolinas, officials said.
The undercover detective soon started buying up scores of weapons from both men.

Aspiring Brooklyn rapper Matthew Best alluded to gun sales in Instagram posts and YouTube videos.

Campbell, 23, is accused of selling 90 guns, including two assault rifles, for nearly $75,000, during 24 meetings with the undercover officer beginning in October.
Walter Walker, 29, of Sanford, N.C., is accused of selling 116 guns, including five assault weapons and a machine gun, for $82,000 during 19 meetings with the undercover detective over 10 months beginning last September.

Best's photos drew the attention of investigators, who uncovered evidence that he was selling weapons out of his makeshift Ocean Hill recording studio.

Both men personally carried up to 14 guns at a time to the city, often traveling on overnight buses to Chinatown, Kelly said.
The undercover snapped up every gun the two runners offered during the investigation to prevent them from hitting the streets, officials said.

The investigation into Best led law enforcement to Brooklyn gun broker, Adeji Omole.

RELATED: MOVING N.Y. PAST PROFILING
During one sale, Campbell's girlfriend, Kendall Danielle Jones, who has also been indicted, tried to assemble a Norinco SKS assault rifle from parts she pulled from her zebra-striped suitcase, officials said.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

Bloomberg and Kelly stood before two tables filled with dozens of firearms, including military-grade automatic weapons.

Even after consulting a YouTube instructional video on her smartphone, she was unable to put the lethal weapon together. The undercover agreed to buy it disassembled for $1,100, officials said.
"It's both horrifying and comical," Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan said of the sale.

Todd Maisel, New York Daily News/New York Daily News

Both Bloomberg and Kelly highlighted a comment by suspect Earl Campbell of Rock Hill, S.C.,who said he didn't want to go to Brooklyn for fear of stop-and-frisk.

"They had no concept of the violence and mayhem they were causing. It was all about money."
Both Walker and Campbell tapped a loose network of suppliers in the Carolinas, who were aware their guns would be sold illegally in New York, officials said. Those suppliers have been indicted as well after being identified through wiretaps.

@NYPDnews/via Twitter

Photo tweeted by NYPD show half of the illegal guns seized from traffickers in North and South Carolina.

Arrests of the suspects began Aug. 2.
RELATED: TEACHER WHO LOST JOB AFTER BEING INNOCENTLY CAUGHT IN POLICE STING SUES FOR $15M

Todd Maisel / New York Daily News

The Country Kitchen Restaurant at 1991 Atlantic Avenue, corner of Saratoga Avenue in Brownsville, Brooklyn where the gun gang was operating.

Guns seized in the massive bust announced Monday included a fully automatic MAC-11 pistol with a silencer as large as the gun.
"In about five seconds, you get 32 rounds spraying down the street," a law enforcement source said of the gun.
The seizure also includes two SKS, a semi-automatic Soviet-era rifle. One had a laser-dot sight attached and a suppressor on the front that eliminates flash and smoke to make it harder to tell where the gunman is firing from.
"This SKS will go through a project door, through the next door, through a wall, through the next wall into the next apartment," the source said.
"That will go through a car, a cop's armor. That will go through anything we've got."
The mayor has poured millions of dollars of his personal fortune into lobbying for tighter gun-control laws nationwide.
"Year after year guns flow into our city from states that don't have common sense gun laws," Bloomberg said Monday.
"Weak gun laws at the federal and state level have a direct and growing impact on the safety of people in our city."

More benefit cuts under ObamaCare

 

By Chris Stirewalt

Published August 22, 2013

Dec. 31, 2012: President Obama pauses as he speaks at the White House in Washington.AP

EMPLOYERS SLASHING COVERAGE - UVA dumps spouses - The University of Virginia announced Wednesday it will stop offering health insurance to some employees’ spouses citing rising costs under ObamaCare. According to a press release on the university’s website, “Provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act are projected to add $7.3 million to the cost of the University health plan in 2014 alone.” This follows news that UPS would be dumping an estimated 15,000 from the company’s plan. Chief National Correspondent Jim Angle follows the story today.
[A new study from consultants Towers Watson says 40 percent of businesses surveyed plan to change their health plans next year in light of the law.]
Nevada union trashes ObamaCare - Nevada’s AFL-CIO passed a resolution Wednesday saying ObamaCare would, “lead to the destruction of the 40 hour work week, higher taxes and force union members onto more costly plans”


OBAMA TURNS COLLEGE RECRUITER - Ed Henry wants to know: “The White House says the bus tour through universities and high schools is focused on college affordability. But since a new Gallup poll found young adults are least likely to say they're familiar with the health law, will he also use this swing to rally his campaign base ahead of the Oct. 1 sign up deadline?”

Welcome to Buffalo, Mr. President - President Obama travels to Buffalo today, part of a two-day economic bus tour that will take him thru upstate New York and Pennsylvania. At the University of Buffalo, Obama will pitch his “better bargain for the middle class” with a call for more education spending. In an e-mail to supporters, the President wrote, “We have to fundamentally rethink about how higher education is paid for in this country.”

Tuition spike - The Albany Times Union reports Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y., scheduled to appear with the president, “…created the NYSUNY 2020 program, which raised tuition 30 percent at all SUNY campuses over five years, from $4,970 to $6,470.” According to US News and World Report, 63 percent of Buffalo University students receive some kind of need-based assistance.

Teacher union angst - The Buffalo Teacher’s Federation is fuming that their teacher’s make $20,000 less than their counterparts in other districts. Buffalo News reports, in some cases, $45,000 less. Census figures reveal the city’s 29.9 percent poverty rate.

Local schools losing ground - The president will wrap-up the day speaking at Henninger High School in Syracuse. Obama will be joined by Education Secretary Arne Duncan to tout the school’s involvement with a government program that pays the tuition for students at failing schools accepted at public colleges and participating private institutions. According to New York’s Department of Education, graduation rates in the city stand at 48%.

[Daniel Henninger, (no relation) writes: “The president gives essentially the same speech everywhere. In part it is a meditation on the meaning of middle class—‘Americans are gritty, resilient and work hard.’ In part it is populist paranoia.”]

Bad to worse - The Syracuse Post Standard reports students in the district are failing to meet the state’s new curriculum standards. “[O]nly 8.7 percent of third- through eighth-graders met the standard in English language arts. In math, only 6.9 percent of students met the standard.”

BAIER TRACKS: FED FLUSTER… Bret Baier: “If anyone needs more evidence of the supercharged role of the Federal Reserve in the economy, here's another piece.  Just the mere hint of different analyses of the minutes of the central bank's July meeting released yesterday sent stocks lower. That's essentially someone in analysis circles whispering, ‘You know, it looks like the Fed may really start turning off the spigot soon.’ Well, imagine what happens when the Fed does slow or stop the flood of new US dollars into the economy.  Bottom line: Fed policy is a huge economic driver.  At his last news conference, President Obama said picking a new Fed chairman, ‘is definitely one of the most important economic decisions that I’ll make in the remainder of my presidency.’  Many experts characterize that as a big understatement.”
GALLUP: UNEMPLOYMENT’S 30 DAY JUMP - Gallup’s latest unemployment figures show a significant jump from July’s 7.7 percent to 8.9 percent released Wednesday. Their figures also show underemployment increased from 17.1 percent to 17.9 percent in the same 30-day period.
Still stuck - NYT reports median income remains below 2007 levels.

NSA HAD EYES ON US COMMUNICATION - Washington Examiner reports the NSA gathered over 56,000 “wholly domestic” communications before a secret court struck the program down. The revelation comes in 100 pages of documents declassified by the agency. Most are secret opinions from the FISA court; they detail major compliance problems. The NSA worked with Congress and the FISA court to correct the problem but ultimately decided it could not salvage the data collected and it was purged in 2012. Chief Intelligence Correspondent Catherine Herridge is taking a deep dive on the documents. To read them yourself, click here.


GRENELL: POWER A NO SHOW ON SYRIA - Newly confirmed UN Ambassador Samantha Power was absent from an emergency meeting of the Security Council Wednesday on a chemical weapons attack that killed hundreds. Power, who has previously called the UN’s failure to intervene in Syria “a disgrace,” was reportedly traveling at the time of the meeting. Fox News Contributor Richard Grenell, a former member of George W. Bush’s UN team, wants to know where she was: “Samantha Power has been on the job exactly 19 days.  In that time, she’s already traveled from New York to Los Angeles to deliver a speech.  Her absence from the UN on Wednesday sends a terrible message at a time when U.S. credibility in the region is suffering.”

WITH YOUR SECOND CUP OF COFFEE...Washington Examiner’s Michael Barone explains the hidden agendas behind the preservation of the dollar bill. [Hint: It’s all about the money…] “No other advanced country, so far as I am aware, uses a bill for amounts approximating a dollar. They use coins, which are longer lasting and more convenient to use in vending machines and parking meters. Coins last longer and don’t bulge up in your wallet.”
Got a TIP from the RIGHT or LEFT? Email FoxNewsFirst@FOXNEWS.COM

POLL CHECK - Real Clear Politics Averages
Obama Job Approval: Approve – 44.5 percent//Disapprove – 50.5 percent
Direction of Country: Right Direction – 29.6 percent Right Track//Wrong Track – 62.2 percent

HILLARYLAND - “Vulture capitalist” cash for Hillary - Politico: “Hillary Clinton is set to be the featured attraction at the private equity firm The Carlyle Group’s investor conference next month.”  Carlyle is the same kind of firm that the 2012 Obama campaign lambasted Mitt Romney for running, famously calling Romney a “vampire.”

Dean backs Hillary “at this point” - In brief interview with the Des Moines Register, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean said, “At this point, I’m supporting Hillary Clinton.” Dean cut the interview short when asked about his presidential aspirations.

VOTER ID “OATH” FIGHT - Kansas and Arizona fight feds on voting - Fox News: Kansas and Arizona say a federal rule that allows voters to establish their status as citizens by simply swearing an oath won’t keep elections safe. They’re suing to overturn the rule.

HOUSE WANTS ANSWERS ON ASYLUM ABUSES - Washington Examiner: “In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., warned that foreigners, particularly from Mexico, are exploiting a law that allows those with a ‘credible fear’ of persecution in their own country to enter the U.S. …Goodlatte intends to hold hearings to investigate the issue and called on Homeland Security personnel to testify”

OFF TO THE RACES - Brown: No gov run, still pondering president and senate bids - Former Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., announced on WBZ Wednesday that he will not run for Massachusetts’ governor. Brown: “From the most conservative to the most liberal Republican: if we are going to be an effective party we have to all have a voice.”

FRIENDLY FOES? - Fox News - Despite the public antagonism between the U.S. and then Soviet Union, then-President Richard Nixon chatted warmly with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev in the run-up to a historic summit in June 1973, according to the final installment of secret recordings released Wednesday. Future former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan, then chairman of the RNC and governor of California, respectively, are also heard in the tapes. [Ed. note: Paging James Rosen!]

CHRISTIAN RESCUE MISSION - Fox News - An international relief agency plans to airlift some 3,400 Christians out of Sudan, where they face increasing persecution from the Islamist government. The Barnabas Fund, named for St. Paul’s ministry partner, has already rescued about 5,000 Christians from the embattled country. The Christians will be taken to South Sudan, a smaller nation formed in 2011 where religious freedom is better tolerated.

FROM THE READERS - “I hope you make your new service interactive. Let viewers suggest topics and write opinion pieces....like letters to the editor.”  – Guy Randolph via FoxNewsFirst@FOXNEWS.COM [Ed. note: Keep them coming.]

PLEASE REMOVE ALL PERSONAL ITEMS - NY POST: “What do handcuffs, a live parrot, bag of diamonds and underwear have in common? They're all items that have been left on planes, much to the surprise of flight attendants. That's according to a survey of cabin crew by travel website Skyscanner.com….Other weird items discovered on board long after passengers departed include dentures, a bag of sand, a glass eye and prosthetic leg.”

AND NOW, A WORD FROM CHARLES - “In Egypt where there are only two sides -- there's only the Brotherhood and only the military -- with wide popular support.  We're not choosing either.  And I think the administration's incoherence on policy is astounding” – Charles Krauthammer on “Special Report with Bret Baier.”

SHOCK DISTURBING REPORT!!! Popular VH1 Reality Star "Cameron Bay" . . . Just Tested POSITIVE FOR HIV!!! (Oh Wow . . . It's REALLY REAL Out Here Y'all)

FBI Is Looking Into Possible Criminal Charges Against Individuals At JPMorgan: Report

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Posted: 08/21/2013 6:17 pm EDT  |  Updated: 08/21/2013 8:01 pm EDT

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking into the possibility of leveling criminal charges against individuals at JPMorgan Chase, an unnamed source told Bloomberg News. The FBI is working alongside the Department of Justice in its probe of the bank's energy trades, which was announced on Monday. JPMorgan, the nation's biggest bank by assets, is also facing a criminal investigation over its actions leading up to the financial crisis. The bank is now facing at least seven ongoing investigations, according to the Wall Street Journal.
You can find Bloomberg's full report here.
Reuters reported Monday:

(Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice for possible manipulation of energy markets following the company's settlement of civil allegations last month with a separate federal energy agency, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the case. The probe, which was said to be in early stages, is being handled by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in Manhattan, the newspaper said on its website. Bharara recently brought criminal charges against two former JPMorgan traders for understating losses from the bank's disastrous London Whale derivatives trades last year.
The Justice Department began the probe of JPMorgan's energy trades as the company agreed to pay $410 million to end an enforcement action by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, according to the report, which said the new probe is to include some of the same issues. It is not known if the investigation is civil or criminal, the newspaper said.
A JPMorgan spokesman declined to comment on the report. A Justice Department spokeswoman in Washington had no immediate comment.
Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon has publicly vowed to resolve the company's regulatory issues.

Also on HuffPost:

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• Rajat Gupta

  Ex-Goldman Rajat Gupta was sentenced to two years in prison for participating in one of the largest insider trading schemes in history.

• Jerome Kerviel

  Kerviel was found guilty of one of the world's most colosal trading frauds in 2010. He cost France's Société Générale bank 4.9 billion Euros. He was sentenced to 3 years in jail and was also sentenced to paying a $7 billion fine, The Guardian reports.

• Steven Goldberg, Peter Grimm and Dominick Carollo

  Goldberg, Grimm and Carollo were found guilty of conning the I.R.S. and cities in a "bid-rigging scheme" during their time at General Electric, Businessweek reports. Goldberg was sentenced to four years in prison. Grimm and Carollo were each sentenced to three years.

• Raj Rajaratnam

  Raj Rajaratnam, the former head of Galleon Management, was sentenced to 11 years in jail in October 2011, the longest prison term for insider trading to date, The Washington Post reports.

• Nick Leeson

  During Nick Lesson's time at Bristain's Barings Bank, he lost 862 million pounds and even managed to level the 233-year-old bank itself, according to The Telegraph. He served four years in a Singapore jail before he was released early with life-threatening cancer.

• Allen Stanford

  Currently serving 110 years in prison, Allen Stanford was, at one time, one of the richest men in America, according to CNBC. He conned about 20,000 investors out of their money in a Ponzi scheme.

• Garth Peterson

  Garth Peterson, the former head of Morgan Stanley's Chinese real-estate investments unit, was sentenced to 9 months in jail last August for bribery, according to The Wall Street Journal.

• Bradley Birkenfeld

  Bradley Birkenfeld spent more than 2 years in jail for assisting in income tax evasion while working at UBS. He then volunteered inside information on Swiss banking to the I.R.S., and was rewarded with $104 million for being a whistle-blower, according to The New York Times.

• Don Of Thieves

  Dennis Levine, Martin Siegel, Ivan Boesky and Michael Milken defrauded Wall Street investors in the 1980's. In a scandalous series of events, Levine stole confidential documents from Lazard Freres investment bank, and the crew made use of inside information, according to The Daily Beast.

Cats $cratch fever: Landlords forced to chase rent from billionaire "John Catsimatidis" mayoral candidate

EXCLUSIVE

• By JOSH KOSMAN
• Last Updated: 8:51 AM, August 22, 2013 
• Posted: 11:53 PM, August 21, 2013

Billionaire businessman and mayoral hopeful John Catsimatidis is in the middle of an expensive media campaign to introduce himself to New Yorkers.
One group that needs no introduction to the supermarket mogul is the landlords of some of his Gristedes supermarkets — and that’s not necessarily a good thing.
Landlords have filed 170 lawsuits against Gristedes in New York’s civil court over the past three decades — most for being late on paying rent, an examination of court records by The Post has revealed.
In many of the cases, Gristedes complains of being overbilled by the landlord, for water or another service, and withholds rent.

Getty Images

Republican mayoral candidate John Catsimatidis’ Gristedes supermarket chain has had far more

disputes with landlords than rivals—which has not endeared him to some landlords.

This, of course, prompts landlords to sue and, in a legal dance that buildings owners claim is all too familiar to them, Gristedes ends up paying all of the back rent, but not before a lot of agita — and legal bills.

One commercial real estate lawyer said his client at this point will not settle over legal fees and plans to force Gristedes to pay them all back rent or face trial.
A Gristedes landlord, who spoke to The Post on the condition of anonymity, said, “He doesn’t pay until you sue him.”
Just this year, Gristedes, Manhattan’s largest supermarket chain, with 29 locations, has faced four lawsuits over late rent, court records show.
They include:
* The nonpayment of $62,166 in rent on the supermarket at 90 Maiden Lane.
* A case brought by Columbia University over rent due on a store at 2704 Broadway that was settled for about $100,000.
* The landlord for a Gristedes store at 307 W. 26th St. sued over $96,000 in back rent and other charges and recently settled.
A landlord is now suing Catsimatidis for up to $300,000 in New York State Supreme Court over a 2011 case, charging that he broke a five-year lease when closing the iconic Jefferson Market in the West Village.
The Catsimatidis camp points out that there were specific issues in all these cases that prompted it to stop paying the rent in order to get the problems resolved.
“Landlord-tenant disputes are all too common in commercial real estate,” a spokesman told The Post. “Many of these actions are directly related to the landlord not abiding to the terms of the lease or not providing the tenant with such items as timely approvals, improvements or repairs. It is the cost of doing business in one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world.”
However, a check of civil court records shows D’Agostino, a rival chain with 13 locations in Manhattan, has no cases filed against it this year and only 14 since the mid-’80s, less than 10 percent of the suits filed versus Catsimatidis’ chain. There were no suits filed against Food Emporium, court records show.
“They always have an excuse,” a second lawyer who has battled Catsimatidis chimed in.
The 64-year-old businessman, who also owns the Red Apple Group, a concern with holdings in real estate and aviation, trails Republican rival Joe Lhota in recent polls.

Hip-hop record producer Scott Storch held up at gunpoint for $100,000 worth of jewelry in Times Square

The brazen thieves pulled a gun on Scott Storch, 39, and his 32-year-old companion at about 7 a.m., just moments after they got an SUV on W. 46th St. near Eighth Ave, the source said. 

By Thomas Tracy / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Tuesday, August 20, 2013, 2:42 PM

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Vallery Jean/Getty Images

Scott Storch, left, and Big Boi together at a concert in Miami Beach in 2010.

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Two gunmen held up famed hip-hop record producer Scott Storch in Times Square Tuesday — taking over $100,000 in jewelry as well as a briefcase containing nearly $5,000 in cash, police sources said.
The brazen thieves pulled a gun on Storch, 39, and his 32-year-old companion at about 7 a.m. — moments after they got an SUV on W. 46th St. near Eighth Ave, the source said.
The hip-hop star — who has worked with Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Beyonce and 50 Cent — is in town for the MTV Video Music Awards.
He had just left the New York Palace Hotel on Madison Ave., TMZ reported.

Police sources say the crooks ordered Storch to hand over his jewelry and briefcase and fled in a black SUV idling nearby, sources said.

Handout/WireImage

Storch was arrested for cocaine possession in Las Vegas in 2012.

No one was harmed.
Storch began his hip-hop career as a keyboardist for The Roots.
His career has been threatened to be derailed by a cocaine addiction.
He said in 2009 that he had squandered a whopping $30 million — a large amount of which went to drugs — in just three years.
Storch has had trouble kicking his problems. He was arrested in Las Vegas in 2012 for cocaine possession.

Taylor Swift pokes fun of Kanye West’s 2009 MTV VMAs interruption with gift to Ed Sheeran

teddysphotos via Instagram

'Taylor made me some jam. Amazing.' Ed Sheeran posted an Instagram photo of the jam Taylor Swift made him referencing the infamous Kanye West VMA incident Monday.

The 23-year-old singer shows off her humorous side while giving her tour partner a jar of jam with some familiar words on it.

By Rachel Maresca / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Tuesday, August 20, 2013, 12:09 PM

Christopher Polk/Getty Images

'Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you … I'll let you finish,' Wes told Swift after he jumped onstage after she won the 'Best Female Video' award at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Jingle Ball 201

Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift pose for a pic at Z100's Jingle Ball in 2012.

Taylor Swift is not going to let this joke finish.
The 23-year-old singer continues to poke fun at Kanye West's infamous interruption of her 2009 VMA acceptance speech by gifting tour partner Ed Sheeran a jar of jam with a note attached clearly mocking West.

RELATED: LISTEN: KANYE WEST ALLEGED RANT LEAKED AFTER TAYLOR SWIFT VMA CONFRONTATION
"Yo Ed-I'm really happy 4 you and I'm gonna let u finish but this is the best JAM OF ALL TIME. -T," the pop star wrote.
Sheeran posted the pic to his Instagram with the caption, "Taylor made me some jam. Amazing."

RELATED: JAY-Z CALLS OUT TAYLOR SWIFT ON 'GREAT GATSBY' SOUNDTRACK
The not-so-inside joke between Swift and Sheeran is directly referring to West grabbing the mic from the "I Knew You Were Trouble" singer while she was addressing the audience after winning "Best Female Video" that year.
"Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you … I'll let you finish. But Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time!" West said on stage at Radio City Music Hall smack in the middle of Swift's big moment.

RELATED: KANYE WEST TO PERFORM ‘BLACK SKINHEAD’ AT MTV’S VMAS
This marks the second time Swift has referred to the past incident in recent months.
"Two VMA nominations!! If you vote and get us one, I promise to keep a firmer grip on the mic this time ;)" the blond beauty tweeted July 17 after MTV released this year's nominations.
West is scheduled to perform at the VMA's live on Aug. 25 from Brooklyn's Barclay's Center and it appears Swift also plans to attend.
This will give the two musicians a chance to cross paths again in New York at the same event four years later.

Katy Perry Wants You To Pick Her Next Single At The VMAs!

Aug 20 2013 3:39 PM EDT 62

It's all up to you, Katy Cats! Vote for what song you want to hear next; the winner will be announced during Perry's show-closing performance on Sunday.

Leave it to Katy Perry to use her MTV Video Music Awards performance to close out a yearly musical tradition in an entirely untraditional way. When it comes time for her to give her first television performance of "Roar" from an undisclosed location in Brooklyn Sunday night, she's letting fans in on the once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Get More:
2013 VMA, Artists.MTV, Music, Katy Perry

Leave it to Katy Perry to use her MTV Video Music Awards performance to close out a yearly musical tradition in an entirely untraditional way. When it comes time for her to give her first television performance of "Roar" from an undisclosed location in Brooklyn Sunday night, she's letting fans in on the once-in-a-lifetime experience.
That's right, Katy Cats, you too can get in on the action.
While her highly anticipated Prism album won't be available until October 22, MTV and Pepsi are teaming up to give her fans an opportunity to get an early listen at two of the songs and pick one track to be released more than a month early. Starting right now, fans can tweet #KATYNOW to unlock clues around two of the tracks, including song titles and lyrics. Once enough fans get in on the action, we'll preview those two tracks on pepsi.mtv.com.

That's when the voting begins, so get ready for battle. Based on Pepsi's first tastes, fans will be in charge of deciding which of the two tracks they want to hear early on September 17. It's anyone's game until moments before Katy's show-closing performance, when the winner will be announced. And for Katy Cats who haven't yet put "Roar" on their iPods, Pepsi will be offering free downloads of her raucous single if they join Pepsi Experience Points (PXP), Pepsi's rewards platform.
But Perry won't be the only artist making this year's VMAs unique. She's joined by a host of A-List artists including Justin Timberlake, Robin Thicke, Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus. It all starts at 9 p.m. ET/PT from Brooklyn's Barclays Center.

Join the conversation ...

Lee Thompson Young Suffered From Depression Leading Up to Tragic Death, Says Source

By Rebecca Macatee Today 10:09 AM PDT

Dr. Billy Ingram/Getty Images

To most of us, the news of Lee Thompson Young's tragic death on Tuesday, Aug. 19, came as a complete shock.

But sources close to the late actor exclusively tell E! News he had suffered from depression for some time leading up to his apparent suicide.
The Rizzoli & Isles star, who was 29 at the time of his death, "didn't drink or party," says a source, adding,  "He was the opposite. Lee loved to travel and was always the first to tell everyone to take a breath and enjoy the beauty of life." He was always "gentle and unassuming," despite his early success, and didn't have the typical "look-at-me" attitude.

That said, those close to Young noticed things "really changed" a few years ago when he began practicing Yorùbá, an Africa-based religion which has a saying, "iku ya j'esin", meaning  "death is preferable to ignominy." Some have questioned whether this means that suicide is an acceptable way to preserve personal or family honor in the face of public shame.
NEWS: Lee Thompson Young's 6 most memorable roles

TNT

However, Yorùbá culture icon and Chief Priest of Osogbo, Araba Ifayemi Osundagbonu Elebuibon, told the National Mirror earlier this year that the religion "[does] not support suicide. Their belief is that if somebody commits suicide, they will be punished in the hereafter."
The Famous Jett Jackson star "took [his religion] to the next level and started wearing white all of the time," says a source, adding, "This religion was everything to him."  Although he reportedly took a break from practicing Yorùbá, he recently returned to the religion. Just before his death, he visited a small village in Africa for something reportedly related to the religion.

NEWS: Remembering Lee Thompson Young
As for Young's family? A source notes that he was close with his mother and sister, but relatives were worried his close friends no longer lived in L.A., leaving him surrounded mostly by "industry types."
Police discovered the erstwhile Disney star's body Monday when, after he didn't show up to set to film Rizzoli & Isles, his concerned coworkers sent the authorities to his home to investigate. In the wake of Young's death, production on the TNT show has been temporarily suspended.

If you or someone you know needs help, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Sony says has received 1 mln preorders for PlayStation 4 console

COLOGNE, Germany | Tue Aug 20, 2013 2:52pm EDT

Aug 20 (Reuters) - Sony has surpassed 1 million preorders worldwide for its new PlayStation 4 console, the head of its SCE computer entertainment division said on Tuesday.
SCE Chief Executive Andrew House added that the console will be available from Nov. 15 in North America and will hit stores in Europe from Nov. 29.
"The response we have received is nothing short of incredible," he said at a conference on the sidelines of Gamescom, Europe's biggest videogames fair.
He added the console will be available in 32 countries worldwide during the holiday season.
(Reporting by Harro ten Wolde; editing by Christiaan Hetzner)

Shots fired at Ga. elementary school

CBS/AP/ August 20, 2013, 1:48 PM

The scene outside McNair Discovery Learning Academy near Altanta, Ga., on August 20, 2013 / WGCL-TV

 

Updated 3:00 p.m. ET
DECATUR, Ga. A suspect was in custody after shots were fired at an Atlanta-area elementary school Tuesday, the school chief said, with television footage showing young students running out the school being escorted by teachers and police.
There are no reports of injuries, and all students and teachers are accounted for and safe.
Television footage showed students being evacuated from Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy in Decatur, a few miles east of Atlanta, and sitting outside in a field about 1:30 p.m. School buses were being brought in to take children to their parents at a nearby Wal-Mart.
According to WSB-TV's website, a woman in the school office called to say a gunman asked her to contact the Atlanta station and police. WSB said during the call, shots were heard in the background.
Numerous police are at the school and SWAT was there for a time. Thurmond said the suspect is a man in his mid-20s and didn't have an obvious connection to the school.
DeKalb County School Board Chairman Melvin Johnson told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (http://bit.ly/16t14iF) there were reports of shots being fired inside the building that houses students from pre-kindergarten to fifth grade.
"We're in the process of reuniting the children with their parents," said Mekka Parish, spokeswoman for the DeKalb County Police Department. "We're just trying to calm the nerves of parents."
Jonessia White, the mother of a kindergartner at the school, told AP she talked to her son's teacher shortly after most students were evacuated. White said the teacher told her they were still inside the building shortly after 2 p.m.
"When I hear he's safely out of the building, I'll be OK," White said, adding that she learned of the shooting when a friend called to say helicopters were hovering over the school.
Police had strung yellow tape up blocking intersections near the school while children waited to be taken to Wal-Mart.
The school has about 870 children enrolled. The academy is named after McNair, an astronaut who died when the space shuttle Challenger exploded on Jan. 28, 1986, according to the school's website.