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Wanted in yet another shooting, South Philly rapper Beanie Sigel turned himself in to police after his concert last week. The day before, his longtime associate was gunned down.
Local rap sensation Beanie Sigel, 29, hit the big time with his debut CD, The Truth, followed by The Reason.
The recent truth? According to police, it’s that Dwight Grant — Sigel’s real name — turned himself in after his concert last Thursday at Camden’s Tweeter Center.
The reason? According to police and the District Attorney’s Office, the rapper again is accused of attempted murder and related charges — this time, in the July 1 shooting of Terrance Speller, 26, of Southwest Philly.
In what Lt. Michael Chitwood of Southwest Detective Division’s Special Investigations Unit called a "negotiated surrender" with Sigel’s attorney and mother, the rapper gave himself up to police on the Philadelphia side of the Ben Franklin Bridge — after his concert.
Chitwood and detectives were backstage during the artist’s show "to make sure the deal went down correctly," the lieutenant told the Review.
Sigel, who took his stage name from the South Philly street where he grew up, is charged in connection with an incident that began around 1 a.m. outside the Pony Tail bar, 322 S. 52nd St., said Chitwood.
Speller reportedly got into an argument with two women outside the tavern, then walked away. A man whom Speller later identified as Sigel pulled up in a green Cadillac Escalade and asked the women, "Who?" Chitwood said.
When Speller got to 52nd and Larchwood, he told police, Sigel exited the car armed with a silver automatic handgun and fired five to six shots, striking the victim once in the stomach and once in the foot, the lieutenant said.
When Speller arrived at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, he had no vital signs, but doctors were able to revive him, said Chitwood.
The next day, investigators issued an arrest warrant for Sigel, whose current address is listed as the 1500 block of South Ringgold Street.
Last Thursday morning, the lieutenant made contact with the rapper’s attorney, Fortunato Perri Jr., and mother to negotiate his surrender after Sigel’s concert.
The recording artist is free on $150,000 bail after posting $15,000 in cash, Chitwood said. Through his attorney, Sigel has denied any involvement in the shooting.
What’s more, confirmed a Homicide official, a 30-year-old man who was shot to death July 2 — the night before the concert — allegedly was a longtime Sigel associate, and had been arrested numerous times on drug charges.
Victor Bland, of the 1100 block of South 18th Street, was pronounced dead 10 minutes after the shooting on the 1700 block of South 22nd Street, said Capt. Charles Bloom of the Homicide Division.
Bland was sitting in his car when the bullet struck him, sending him careening into a parked vehicle. Seventeenth District officers found the victim inside his 1988 Buick around 8:30 p.m. last Wednesday with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso, the captain said.
According to a witness, the shooter approached Bland’s car on foot and, after a brief argument, pulled out a pistol and fired at him, Bloom said.
Authorities speculate that Sigel controlled Bland’s drug activity.
Like many rappers before him, Sigel has a growing rap sheet. Preliminary hearings cloud his immediate future.
Yesterday morning, he had a hearing for the Jan. 9 assault of Wendall Mathis near the 1800 block of Wingohocking Street, said a spokesperson for the District Attorney’s Office. The rapper is charged with aggravated and simple assault and recklessly endangering another person in that incident.
On Monday, he has a preliminary hearing for the attempted murder of Speller. Sigel also faces another hearing for charges of carrying an unlicensed gun in another criminal case.
Asians targeted in 17th
Over the last five weeks, 17th Police District officials have noted a marked increase in the number of robberies committed by black males against Asian adults.
In all seven incidents, one or more males robbed Asian men and women — five at gunpoint, said Capt. Jerrold Bates of the 17th District. None of the victims was seriously hurt, and in five of the seven robberies, the culprits targeted females, the captain said.
The crimes are occurring at all hours of the day between Tasker and Moore and Broad and 17th streets, Bates said.
"We’re seeing a major increase in the number of Asians being robbed. So it’s become a serious concern for us," the captain told the Review.
The first incident happened June 1 and the last one was reported last Sunday, when two black males allegedly threw a 27-year-old pregnant Asian woman to the ground and snatched her purse on the 1700 block of South Bancroft Street, said Bates. The victim was taken to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for an injured abdomen, but the captain did not know her condition. Police recovered the victim’s bag, containing credit cards and ID, but the culprits made off with $30, the captain said.
Police made one arrest in Sunday’s incident, but are still searching for the second man, Bates said.
Curtis Crump, 28, from the same block where the crime occurred, was charged with robbery and other offenses, said the captain. Investigators are trying to determine if Crump is responsible for more crimes in the area, Bates said.
Merchants also have been targeted. Two armed black males robbed an Asian grocer on the 1500 block of Tasker Street around 9 a.m. Monday and took $300 and a box of calling cards, said the captain.
And on July 1, an Asian-owned sneaker store on the 1400 block of Point Breeze Avenue was robbed. Taken was $100 and a bag of sneakers valued at around $1,000, Bates said.
Anyone with information is asked to call Capt. Bates at 215-686-3170/3171.
Bank held up again
For the second time in five months, a robber targeted Commerce Bank at 2201 S. Broad St., police said.
A bandit entered the bank around 11:45 a.m. Tuesday and handed a teller a demand note, instructing her that if she quickly put $2,000 in an envelope, no one would get hurt, said Sgt. Steve Biello of South Detective Division.
The FBI and local law enforcement are investigating, the sergeant said.
Police nabbed a suspect in the Feb. 2 robbery. Kenneth Bagley, 33, of the 1300 block of South Fourth Street — a paroled bank robber who was convicted of five robberies more than a decade ago — is accused of holding up Commerce Bank and then carjacking a woman unloading groceries blocks away.
To report information on Tuesday’s robbery, call South Detectives at 215-686-3013.
Gun was no protection
A man who had just purchased a gun Sunday was robbed of his new weapon — ironically enough, at gunpoint, police said.
The 21-year-old victim was leaving the shooting range and gun shop on the 800 block of Ellsworth Street around 2:15 p.m. when the offender pulled up to him and displayed a gun in his waistband, said Sgt. Steve Biello of South Detectives. The victim gave the culprit his bag, containing a highpoint 9 mm valued at $130, Biello said. The cyclist pedaled away east on Ellsworth, now with two guns in his arsenal.
To report information, call South Detectives at 215-686-3013.
Robbed while renovating
Two males barged into a home last Thursday on the 1800 block of Mountain Street and robbed the owner and three men who were helping him renovate the place, police said.
The 33-year-old victim told police that around 2:15 p.m., the intruders, armed with black and silver handguns, entered his property and ordered everyone inside to the floor, said Sgt. Steve Biello of South Detectives.
The culprits took $1,300 and a cell phone, the sergeant said.
To report information, call South Detectives at 215-686-3013.
