NY DAILY NEWS MURDER INC TRIAL

New York Daily News - http://www.nydailynews.com
Hip-hop's 'pact with the devil' By JOHN MARZULLIDAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER Monday, November 14th, 2005

You can call this rap "Get Rich or Go to Jail Tryin'."
Hip-hop moguls Irving (Irv Gotti) Lorenzo and Christopher (Chris Gotti) Lorenzo head to trial tomorrow in Brooklyn - in a case sure to be a high-security spectacle with possible appearances by stars like Jay-Z, Ashanti and Ja Rule, and testimony about the shooting of 50 Cent.
The Lorenzo brothers scored mega-platinum success with a record label daringly called Murder Inc., hyping themselves as gangsters in the rap underworld and adopting the Gotti name.
Now the record executives find themselves in the fight of their lives as federal prosecutors vow to peel back the Kevlar curtain on the Lorenzo legend and show how they made a deal with a devil - using a drug baron's money to start their empire.
If they're convicted of laundering crack-cocaine cash for Queens drug kingpin Kenneth (Supreme) McGriff, the Lorenzos face up to 20 years in prison and the forfeiture of millions.
Their high-powered lawyers say it's a bad rap.
"We did not get money from McGriff, period," said Gerald Shargel, who represents Christopher Lorenzo.
Irving, 34, and Christopher, 38, who are free on $1 million bail, come from humble origins in southern Queens, where their parents sheltered them from "any element that could lead them to gang or drug activity," according to court papers.
That was no easy task because the gritty neighborhood was dominated by dreaded crack barons Lorenzo (Fat Cat) Nichols, Howard (Pappy) Mason and McGriff's bloodthirsty crew, called the Supreme Team.
They declined pretrial interviews, but the brothers blast the feds in a new book, "Queens Reigns Supreme."
"This is the government, right?" Irving ranted. "They killed JFK. ... I'm saying that to give you a parallel that they can pretty much do whatever they want."
"If they wanna trump something up because we helped a friend in a legal fashion, so be it," Christopher told author Ethan Brown.
Although neither brother is charged with a crime of violence or ordering McGriff to hurt anyone, prosecutors argue both's hands are plenty dirty.
"Before Irving Lorenzo became powerful and rich, Supreme was looking out for him," Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Haran said in court last week.
"That's what [McGriff] brings to the table," Haran said. "[If] Irv and Chris have a enemy, Supreme will get the job done."
In a hip-hop world racked by the slayings of Tupac Shakur, Biggie Smalls and Jam Master Jay, McGriff's muscle - and money - was key to the Lorenzos' success, prosecutors said.
The government alleges that Murder Inc. was founded with McGriff's cash in 1999.
Witnesses will also testify that between 1994 and 2000, drug money was delivered to Irving and Christopher, prosecutors revealed.
In exchange for laundering McGriff's cash, Murder Inc. artists and execs were given protection from would-be robbers and extortionists, they alleged.
Prosecutors want to show how the Lorenzos were surrounded by criminals. Among the tidbits they hope the jury will hear: Irving's bodyguard was hired out of prison after a 20-year stint for murder; Christopher's driver was a drug dealer allegedly involved in two homicides.
Haran also pushed Judge Edward Korman to permit evidence showing the Lorenzos were intimately aware of McGriff's violent activities - including his alleged involvement in the 2000 shooting of 50 Cent.
"I love the s--- out of you," Irving allegedly messaged McGriff after learning of the gunplay - which prosecutors believe was sparked by a 50 Cent song, "Ghetto Koran," written about McGriff.
But the defense says the feds are trying to bootstrap evidence against McGriff - who is being tried separately on murder and drug charges - onto the Lorenzos, whose courtroom supporters are expected to include pal Jay-Z and Murder Inc. artists Ashanti and Ja Rule.
"They want this trial to be about violence having nothing to do with Irv and Chris," said Irving's lawyer, Gerald Lefcourt.
Shargel acknowledges McGriff bestowed "street credibility" on Murder Inc. because "to be associated with McGriff is a means of protection."
Still, he insists there was nothing illegal in the relationship.
Christopher Lorenzo told the feds McGriff was a longtime friend who was showered with "favors" - like a corporate credit card and a soundtrack for his straight-to-video flick "Crime Partners" - for helping Murder Inc. scout new talent.
The key figures
KENNETH McGRIFF, 46, alias Supreme: Notorious drug kingpin, leader of the feared Supreme Team in South Jamaica. Served eight years in prison and resumed his criminal activities after his 1997 release, authorities say, allegedly aligning himself with the Lorenzos to launder cash. Suspected of orchestrating the attempted murder of rapper 50 Cent in 2000 as payback for an insult in a song. Under indictment on charges of racketeering, three murders and drug trafficking.
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CHRISTOPHER LORENZO, 38, alias Chris Gotti: Helped little brother Irving with his music career in the city's biggest nightclubs. In 1993, Chris and sister Christine lent Irving $5,000 to produce his first single, "It's Real," by MC Geronimo. Father of two who lives in Queens, he oversees operations at the rap label as vice president. He is charged with money laundering and conspiracy.
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IRVING LORENZO, 34, alias Irv Gotti: Started deejaying at 16, selling mix tapes out of a local barbershop. Hired as an A&R agent - artists' rep - at Television Tune Records in 1994 and jumped to Island Def Jam two years later, bringing along future stars Jay-Z, DMX and Ashanti. In 1999, founded the Murder Inc. record label, now known as The Inc. A father of three, he lives in Westchester County. He is charged with laundering drug money, conspiracy and skirting federal reporting requirements on financial transactions.
Big stakes for star prosecutor
The Murder Inc. trial pits Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf, who is looking for a big win after some recent setbacks, against two of the city's best-known criminal lawyers, Gerald Shargel and Gerald Lefcourt.
The two Gerrys are princes of the defense bar.
Shargel's courtroom skills are mesmerizing, and he's defended such high-profile clients as the late mob boss John Gotti and electrician Danny Pelosi, convicted of killing millionaire Ted Ammon.
Lefcourt once headed the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and he's represented everyone from the Black Panthers to hotel mogul Harry Helmsley to the Sex Pistols' Sid Vicious.
Mauskopf's prosecution of music impresarios Irving and Christopher Lorenzo is among several high-profile cases on her radar.
Two cases - the trial of city officials and crew members in the Staten Island ferry crash, and the reputed Mafia cops who allegedly leaked secrets to the mob - are in trouble.
The feds, who also endured a disastrous defeat in the seven-week trial of allegedly mobbed-up union officials, are hoping to bounce back with a victory in the Murder Inc. case.
There's been at least one bump: A prosecutor on the case since the inception of the probe four years ago resigned on the eve of the trial for personal reasons.
Mauskopf's team is now being led by a couple of battle-hardened drug prosecutors - Carol Pokorny and Sean Haran.