Felony gun possession charges against G-Unit rappers Lloyd
Banks and Young Buck, arrested last year following a concert at
Madison Square Garden, were dropped Wednesday at the request of prosecutors.
“This whole experience reminds me of the
title of my new album – ‘Rotten Apple,'” Banks, whose real
name is Chris Lloyde, said in a statement.
Police said Lloyde and Young Buck, whose real name
is David Brown, were riding in a van with several other men in August 2005 when
it ran a red light in midtown Manhattan. Officers said they discovered a loaded
handgun and another weapon in the van.
Lloyde and Brown had just
performed at Madison Square Garden on the “Anger Management 3” tour
starring Eminem and 50 Cent, another member of G-Unit.
Prosecutors asked a judge to dismiss the charges after an
investigation determined the neither Lloyde, 24, nor Brown, 25,
had possessed the guns, said Barbara Thompson, spokeswoman for Manhattan
District Attorney Robert Morgenthau.
Thompson said one suspect (the fall
guy) has pleaded guilty in the case; another remains under indictment.
In December 2005, Brown pleaded no contest to a felony in
the stabbing of a man during a melee at the 2004 Vibe Awards show. He was
sentenced to three years’ probation.
