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Ten gang members were arrested this week while Henley, 58, and
one other were initially considered fugitives, the statement
said. The FBI announced on X Wednesday evening that both had
been taken into custody. Other defendants were already in
custody.
Henley allegedly masterminded a criminal operation that
investigators dubbed the “Big U Enterprise,” and is also
suspected of embezzling donations to Developing Options, an
anti-gang charity he founded but which prosecutors say he used
“as a front for fraudulent purposes and to insulate its members
from suspicion by law enforcement.”
He is suspected in the 2021 killing of an aspiring rap musician
who was signed to his recording company, Uneek Music, according
to prosecutors.
The rapper, identified in court documents as "R.W.," was
allegedly shot and killed by Henley after he recorded a
“defamatory song” about the gang leader at a Las Vegas studio,
prosecutors said. R.W.'s body was found in a ditch off
Interstate 15 in the Nevada desert.
Prosecutors said Henley ran the enterprise like a mob boss and
used his stature and long-standing association with the Rollin’
60s and other street gangs to intimidate businesses and
individuals in Los Angeles.
“Not only did the enterprise expand its power through violence,
fear, and intimidation, but it also used social media platforms,
documentaries, podcasts, interviews, and Henley’s reputation and
status as an ‘O.G.’ (original gangster) to create fame for — and
stoke fear of — the Big U Enterprise, its members, and its
associates,” the U.S. attorney's statement said.
Henley is accused of organizing criminal activity including
extortion, robbery, trafficking and exploiting sex workers,
fraud, and illegal gambling. In addition, he's suspected of
submitting a fraudulent application for a COVID-19 pandemic
relief loan for Uneek Music.
It wasn't known Wednesday if Henley has an attorney. If
convicted, he could face a statutory maximum sentence of life in
federal prison.
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