Subscribe
NewsOne Featured Video
CLOSE
This past weekend, the NY Daily News released a shocking story claiming that respected Hip-Hop manager, Jimmy “Henchmen” Rosemond was a federal informant. The paper claims that Rosemond’s “snitching” led to a Brooklyn man being sent to jail.
Earlier this morning, a stream of statements repudiating the NY Daily News reports came from musicians, legal attorneys, and other celebrities.
Below are the comments:
WYCLEF JEAN – WORLD RENOWN MUSICAL ARTIST & HUMANITARIAN:

“I was inside the courtroom at Jimmy Rosemond’s sentencing and nothing that the NY Daily News alleges took place. Looking from the outside within, the way the judge and prosecutor were beating on this man, if at any time there was such cooperation it would have been made crystal clear in the courtroom. I speak as a witness that was in the courtroom that day and it deeply saddens me that whenever we do the right thing, people want to put us on the wrong path.”
BARRY HANKERSON – OWNER OF BLACKGROUND RECORDS AND ALIYAH’S UNCLE:

“I attended the sentencing hearing for Jimmy in the capacity of a character witness and in the courtroom I observed a judge that was moved by the number of people that had experienced Jimmy over time, particularly me who worked very closely with him. Jimmy is clearly a man that impacted the court by the way he lived. At one point during the sentencing the judge responded that the fact that everyone was there on Jimmy’s behalf was impressive and Jimmy deserved leniency in his sentencing. It was obvious to all of us as observers that the sentence was not handed down based upon reports or intrinsic findings but based upon the obvious character and rehabilitation that Jimmy portrayed through his friends, associates and family members.”
FAB 5 FREDDY – DIRECTOR/HIP-HOP PIONEER:

“I was there at Jimmy’s sentencing hearing as a character witness and nothing like what is purported in the New York Daily News actually transpired in the courtroom. I vividly remember one of the highlights that day was when Gladys Knight appeared on Jimmy’s behalf and he had a huge showing of support. At one stage the prosecutor was trying to be aggressive because of contempt that Jimmy had won other cases and the judge had to scold her for being too aggressive. It was a memorable moment. Jimmy finished the remaining term and has since been on the right path. This seems like a complete smear job and what the Daily News did resembles what was done to him at the Los Angeles Times which resulted in the firing of a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and a retraction from the newspaper.”
ERIC B -PRODUCER, HIP-HOP ICON:

“I was there from day one for Jimmy and as one that was at his sentencing I can say that it was never mentioned in court that he cooperated with the state. In fact, the prosecutor said that the courts had let Jimmy slip through the cracks. There was unequivocally never any dialogue in the court sentencing that even remotely resembles what was written in the Daily News article and the story clearly didn’t point to any evidence. How do you have a case with no evidence? It just doesn’t add up.”
BRYCE WILSON – MUSICIAN, PRODUCER & SONGWRITER:

“There was a profound group of people that came out to support Jimmy Rosemond at his sentencing hearing from people in the political arena to people such as myself in the entertainment industry and his lawyer never once said he provided cooperation in return for leniency. Absolutely none of this was ever brought up in the courtroom and what the Daily News asserts is absurd.”
ATTORNEY JEFFREY LICHTMAN:

“The article in today’s New York Daily News about Jimmy Rosemond is nothing short of a targeted assassination attempt by the government, with an assist from their favorite daily newspaper.  Due to the government’s inability to convict Jimmy in a court of law, they have stooped to trying to get him lynched in the street. We are weighing our legal options at this time but we can say in no uncertain terms: Jimmy is not and has never cooperated with law enforcement.  If you noticed the article never stated one named person that Mr. Rosemond allegedly informed upon. Any suggestion otherwise is a damnable, actionable lie.”

Click here to view photos: