The Irv and Christopher Gotti money laundering trial was rocked yesterday by the testimony of government witness Jon Ragin, who alleged that the brothers were intimately involved with the 2000 shooting of rapper 50 Cent. Irv and Chris (born Irving and Christopher Lorenzo) are accused of laundering over a million dollars from illegal activities such as drug dealing through their entertainment company, Murder Inc.
According to MTV.com, Ragin, a former pimp, said that the Gottis were gunning for 50 Cent because of the verbal jabs 50 was making towards Murder Inc.’s prize pony, Ja Rule. Ragin claims that an underling with connections to the Inc. was the gunman in the shooting. “They’d joke about the way 50 was squirming in his car [after being shot],” Ragin testified. “[50] kept putting up his hands to stop the bullets.” Gotti attorney Gerald Shargel suggested that the 50 Cent shooting has nothing to do with his clients’ case and that the information will be prejudicial for the jury since 50 is “at the height of his popularity.” The Gotti trial continues today with its fourth day of testimony in Brooklyn federal court.
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