The sister-in-law of Busta Rhymes’ slain bodyguard lashed out at the Aftermath rapper for not paying his last respects at Israel Ramirez’ funeral on Wednesday.
Bodyguard Ramirez, who, by some eyewitness accounts, is believed to have taken a bullet intended for Rhymes, was laid to rest at an Upper West Side funeral home in New York.
“[Israel Ramirez] put his life on the line. For what? I mean, where are they?” demanded Jenny Fernandez.
“To them, all these people that watch them – that watch their bodies – are replaceable.”
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Speaking to the New York Post, Fernandez also criticised Rhymes and others who were on the scene of the crime for not telling the police what they know about the shooting.
“Why aren’t they cooperating to find the person that shot him?” she asked.
Ramirez, 29, was shot dead Sunday outside a Brooklyn warehouse by an unknown gunman while guarding Rhymes during a celebrity-studded video shoot.
Police have yet to arrest anyone in connection with the murder, but they are examining CCTV footage to see what happened after G-Unit member Tony Yayo is allegedly meant to have had an altercation with Swizz Beatz, a member of the Ruff Ryders crew.
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Police believe Ramirez’ killer may have been with the G-Unit entourage on the set of the Touch It (Remix) video shoot, but none of the stars present at the scene have come forward.
“None of the principals, the stars, who were present at the time have been questioned,”Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said. “Let’s put it this way – they’re not knocking on our door to talk to us.”
“There is another individual, a bodyguard, that was there,” he continued. “We’re waiting until after the funeral to question him.”
*editors note: Busta Rhymes released a statement today, explaining his absence at the funeral: “Out of respect for the family’s desire for, and right to, privacy during this mourning period I made the decision to attend Izzy’s wake on the second day rather than the first, knowing that my presence [on Wednesday] would have brought unnecessary media attention to a personal and private time of grieving.”
