Prosecutors say a video shows rapper Pooh Shiesty pressing for his release from fellow rapper Gucci Mane‘s record label while an armed man blocks a door during an alleged robbery at a Texas music studio in January.

A court record shows the video was submitted as evidence in federal court in Dallas, where Pooh Shiesty and eight others have been indicted on kidnapping and extortion charges. Prosecutors say the victims were robbed at gunpoint after traveling to the city to discuss Pooh Shiesty’s recording contract with Mane’s 1017 Records.

The victims have only been referred to by their initials in court documents. One, R.D., is described as the owner of 1017 Records. Mane’s legal name is Radric Delantic Davis. The song “Crash Dummy,” which Gucci Mane released this spring, includes the lyrics: “I thought it was a business meeting, but it was a set up.”

The court document was filed by prosecutors in response to a motion Pooh Shiesty filed last month proposing home confinement, arguing that the evidence against him did not warrant keeping him in custody pending trial, as was ordered by a judge in April.

But prosecutors said in their filing that the motion from Pooh Shiesty, whose legal name is Lontrell Williams Jr., should be denied and that evidence against him was “extraordinarily strong.”

Prosecutors said they have the cooperation of all five victims and witnesses in the case and cellphone location data. There is also surveillance video placing the defendants at the scene, according to prosecutors, in addition to the video of the owner of 1017 Records being forced to declare that Pooh Shiesty was “dropped” from his label.

Prosecutors said in the filing that just before that video was made, Pooh Shiesty produced a printed contractual release for the record label owner to sign. The man initially refused but signed after Pooh Shiesty allegedly pointed an AK-style pistol his head.

Prosecutors also said BIG30, whose legal name is Rodney Wright, recorded the video with his cellphone while another defendant blocked the door holding a firearm that resembled an AK-47 style rifle.

According to prosecutors, Pooh Shiesty robbed the record label owner of about $450,000 worth of items including his wedding band, a watch, a pair of earrings and cash.

Prosecutors have said that at the time of the alleged confrontation, Pooh Shiesty was on home confinement for a prior firearms conspiracy conviction out of Florida and was required to wear an electronic monitoring device.

Attorneys for Pooh Shiesty and BIG30 did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment Thursday.

Gucci Mane is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of trap music alongside fellow Atlanta rappers T.I. and Jeezy. He emerged in the mid-2000s with his breakout single “Icy” and went on to build a vast catalog.

The event, which will also include children’s activities, such as balloon modelling, face painting, and sand art, will take place in front of Primark and Sports Direct between 11am and 2pm on Sunday, July 5.

And, those attending are in with a chance to win a free bus fare, with 500 Stagecoach and Arriva day passes up for grabs.

Steve Walker, Managing Director at Stagecoach North East, said: “The summer holidays are a busy time for families, and taking the bus can make getting to Teesside Park simple and affordable.”

Representatives from Arriva and Stagecoach will be on hand to offer guidance on routes and travel options to the retail park.

Free children’s travel is available on both operators’ services this summer, with up to three children aged 11 or under travelling at no cost when accompanied by a fare-paying adult.

Services to the retail park run regularly throughout the day from Hartlepool, Norton, Billingham and Middlesbrough, from 7am to 10.30pm. Stagecoach’s 36, 37, and 38, and Arriva’s X12 and 16 buses provide easy access to the centre.

Richard McGowan, Head of Commercial at Arriva North East and Yorkshire, said: “Teesside Park is a popular place for shopping, food and family days out, and good bus services give people another easy way to get there.

“Our day passes are valid for use within a year, so visitors can pick one up at the event and use it when it suits them. We’ll also have a bus on site for the children’s treasure hunt, adding another free activity for families on the day.”

By KATRINA SCHOLLENBERGER, US HEAD OF LIVE NEWS and RACHEL BOWMAN, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER and MARY O CONNOR

Updated: 23:13 BST, 2 July 2026

The wedding of the year is upon us! 

Despite initial reports claiming Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce were expected to say ‘I do’ tomorrow, insiders tell the Daily Mail the pair are set to get hitched this evening.

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Two sources confirmed that tonight’s star-studded Madison Square Garden celebration, which was believed to be their rehearsal dinner at the Infosys Theater, is actually the pair’s wedding ceremony. 

Reports are circulating that the pair may already be legally married but our sources say they intend to exchange vows in front of 100 of their nearest and dearest tonight, before a blowout, festival-style party tomorrow. 

The megastars’ cars were spotted arriving at MSG on Thursday afternoon with a security escort in tow. 

The couple have kept almost all of their plans under wraps, but with the celebrity guests pouring in to New York City, all eyes are on the extravagant nuptials. 

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Food trucks and vendors have been setting up at MSG for days, bringing in what is believed to be an elaborate, castle-style production stage for the event. 

Swifties and NFL fans are buzzing with excitement, but New Yorkers are less than impressed. The circus-like party will shut down multiple blocks in midtown and impact Fourth of July travel out of nearby Penn Station on one of the hottest days of the year. 

Follow the Daily Mail for every live update from the showbiz wedding of the century…. 

Here comes the bride! Taylor Swift arrives at MSG

Cars that left from Taylor Swift’s New York City house have arrived at Madison Square Garden ahead of her highly anticipated wedding.

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Preparations have been underway in the sweltering heat for the star-studded event.

Celebrities have flocked to the Big Apple, while delivery trucks and a huge police presence have become a constant at the venue.

WATCH: K9 units patrol MSG before Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s celebrations

First look inside the wedding of the year

Fresh pictures outside of Madison Square Garden reveal workers hanging pink curtains inside of the venue.

Daily Mail insiders report that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce will exchange vows tonight inside of the iconic arena in front of their closest friends and family.

No phones allowed at wedding

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are enforcing a strict no-phone policy inside Madison Square Garden for their big day.

A sign at a security checkpoint outside the venue instructs guests to ‘have identification out, have devices ready,’ suggesting attendees will be forced to give up their phones before entering.

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The couple is going to great lengths to keep their lavish nuptials as private as possible, with at least 1,000 guests expected to arrive.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce: American Love Story

She’s the bookish pop superstar who had everything but the husband she’s always craved.

He’s the bullish sports bro from Cleveland with a raucous past.

But friends say Travis offered Taylor something she couldn’t refuse…

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Workers are seen setting up a privacy tent outside of Madison Square Garden ahead of Tayvis wedding

Hiding in plain sight for 20 YEARS: The long trail of MSG wedding clues that are in Taylor Swift’s songs and music videos

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are gearing up to tie the knot at Madison Square Garden this week – and it turns out, there have been some pretty big clues about her wedding plans hidden in plain sight for years.

Swift and Kelce, both 36, are reported to first have a rehearsal dinner on July 2 in front of 100 of their closest friends and family members, followed by an official ceremony with roughly 1,000 attendees the next day, per the New York Times.

They are understood to be transforming the arena into a lush garden with a massive castle. The Daily Mail spotted crews bringing trees and greenery along with two ‘large white banisters’ into the venue this week.

It turns out, Swift may have been dropping hints about her wedding for over a decade.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce said ‘I do’ before MSG bash, sources claim

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are ‘already married’ ahead of their massive New York City celebration.

Multiple sources told Page Six the couple said ‘I Do’ in a private ceremony before their party at MSG this weekend.

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RoseMarie Terenzio, longtime personal assistant to JFK Jr who helped mastermind the Kennedy heir’s famously clandestine wedding to Carolyn Bessette 30 years ago this fall, previously told the Daily Mail she expected the megastar and NFL player would already be married before their party.

ASPCA thanks Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce for wedding donation

The ASPCA thanked the bride and groom from their pre-wedding donation with an adorable kitten post.

‘Thank you, Taylor and Travis. We’re deeply grateful to @taylorswift13 and @tkelce for their generous donation to the ASPCA as a part of their latest charitable giving announcement,’ the post said.

Who is Taylor Swift’s wedding planner?

While details about the Lover singer’s nuptials have been under wraps, she is rumored to have been working with an in-demand celebrity wedding planner.

Sources told Page Six that Los Angeles wedding planner Mark Seed has been working on the star-studded event ‘for months.’

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Seed does not appear to have a public social media presence, and his website is a single-page listing of his contact information.

However, he is said to have planned weddings for A-list clients such as Jennifer Lawrence, Billie Lourd and Swift’s close friends Jack Antonoff and Margaret Qualley, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Swifties descend on MSG

Outside Madison Square Garden, the operation is impossible to ignore, with dozens of officers starting to appear all around the stadium.

Road closures have caused frustration for commuters and New Yorkers alike, as Swifties have also descended on the arena in droves.

Lenore Huspeth, 20, a Swift fan visiting from Houston, spoke to the Daily Mail outside the venue. She was ‘shocked’ when she learned the wedding was likely to be at MSG.

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‘When we heard she was getting married here, we were like: “OMG! We get to be in NYC for her wedding,”‘ she said.

Fellow college student Victoria, also from Houston, added: ‘It’s gonna be a lot of craziness, but it’s gonna be great at the end of the day. This is what you come to New York for.’

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce wedding not exempt from NYC Mayor’s AC orders

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding is not exempt from Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s air conditioning orders during the blistering NYC heatwave, TMZ reports.

A city official told the outlet that the mayor’s recommendation of the AC setting at 78 degrees was a suggestion for all five boroughs, including Manhattan.

The couple are set to wed at MSG in the heart of the city tomorrow.

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However, the ironic arena is reportedly automatically climate-controlled with no thermostat. The system determines what temperature the inside of the building should be based on the weather outside.

A MAIN road in a North Yorkshire town is closed this evening (Thursday) due to safety works.

The chicane near Dairy Way/Farm View on the B1248 on Beverley Road,Norton, is being removed following a number of crashes and near misses in recent years.

Nearby residents and Cllr Keane Duncan, who represents Norton on North Yorkshire Council, have been campaigning for improvements for over a decade.

Cllr Duncan said: “The works will see the chicane removed, additional speed cushions installed and a bay created for mobile enforcement.

“The road will be closed tonight and tomorrow night (Friday) from 7pm to midnight.”

Have an issue? Email cllr.keane.duncan@northyorks.gov.uk or send a message on Facebook

Mickey Blank, a celebrity photographer who has been working in New York for over 10 years, told BBC Newsbeat that Madison Square Garden is currently surrounded by members of the press but there’s not actually much to see.

Despite rumours of a red-carpet reception for the expected A-list guests, Blank said she’s not expecting a parade of big-name arrivals.

“It’s like Pentagon-level secrecy,” she said.

“You cannot go in, you cannot see anything.”

The arena boasts underground parking that allows people to arrive in almost secrecy, but the BBC spotted a large white canopy tent being set up in front of the arena where many guests are expected to arrive.

Many VIPs though, including Swift and Kelce, are expected to enter through the underground entrance for privacy.

“Your chances of seeing Taylor Swift are, like, lower than zero,” she said.

She added that one of the biggest challenges facing those preparing the venue will be all the recent events that just were hosted there. event that was just staged there.

Blank attended a darts championships at the arena earlier this week, filled with beer-drinking fans, many dressed in costume.

“The floor was so sticky, I could barely move,” she said.

Days before that, the arena hosted a concert for the rock band the Bleachers. Earlier last month, the arena also hosted parties and basketball games when the New York Knicks won the NBA Championship.

Transforming the arena into a wedding venue will be a feat.

“I cannot imagine the preparation that goes into that,” Blank said.

The owners of Johnsons of Old Hurst near Huntingdon have spoken out for the first time since the crocodile enclosure incident

The proprietors of a zoo where a three-year-old boy was attacked by a crocodile after reportedly being thrown into its enclosure by a stranger have released a heartbreaking statement.

Andy and Tracey Johnson, who operate Johnsons of Old Hurst near Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, described the incident as “one of the most distressing” their family and staff had ever faced. The couple have broken their silence on the incident for the first time, expressing gratitude to emergency services, visitors and their own team for their rapid response on June 18, while confirming their thoughts remain with the young boy and his family as he continues to recover.

The youngster remains at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge following serious injuries sustained when he was reportedly thrown approximately 15ft into the crocodile enclosure within the zoo’s Tropical House. He suffered a broken arm and a fractured pelvis after landing on a concrete walkway before falling into the water, reports the Express.

In a statement posted on social media, Andy and Tracey said: “A fortnight ago, our family and team at Johnsons of Old Hurst experienced one of the most distressing incidents in our history. We were alerted to reports that a child had allegedly been thrown into one of our crocodile enclosures in the Tropical House.

“Everyone who was on site that day acted with incredible speed and determination. Within minutes of the first radio call, the child had been rescued from the enclosure and was receiving first aid.”

“The emergency services arrived very quickly, supported by the MAGPAS Air Ambulance, and we cannot thank them enough for their professionalism, compassion and dedication in such difficult circumstances.

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“We would also like to express our heartfelt thanks to the visitors who stepped forward to help, including off-duty paramedics and police officers, whose calm and immediate actions made a real difference. We are immensely proud of our own staff, who responded without hesitation and did everything they could to help and support the child until the emergency services took over.”

The couple went on to express their gratitude for the kindness shown by the local community and people across the country, describing the outpouring of support as “overwhelming”.

They added: “Every message of support, every kind word and every expression of concern has meant a great deal to our family and our team during an incredibly difficult time. Thank you for standing with us. Above all, our thoughts remain with the young boy and his family.

“We continue to hope and pray for his speedy recovery and ask that they are given the privacy, compassion and support they need at this time.”

Cambridgeshire Police confirmed the toddler remains in a stable condition at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, though faces a lengthy recovery ahead. His family described his rehabilitation as “extremely challenging” and extended their thanks to both the zoo and members of the public for their ongoing support.

A 30-year-old man from Norfolk was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in connection with the incident, before subsequently being released on bail until 18 September while detectives continue their enquiries. The man, who has no known connection to the victim, was reportedly assessed as not being fit for interview.

The Tropical House welcomed visitors back on Saturday, nine days following the distressing incident. The attraction had shut its doors “out of respect to the family”.

As the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary, there is a tension between those who want to remember an uncomplicated past and those who would remember that freedom is a constant struggle. It’s a right that must be fought for and defended.

And amid all the hoop-la over the celebrations, the nation risks forgetting that since the War of Independence, African Americans have played a crucial role defining and expanding American liberty.

The Declaration of Independence promised “all men are created equal”. And yet when Thomas Jefferson – himself an enslaver – penned those words, there were around half a million enslaved people living in the 13 colonies.

Black Americans saw the contradictions at the heart of the Revolutionary era, and they sought to redefine liberty. During the Revolutionary War, thousands of enslaved Americans sought freedom – sometimes by joining the British, and sometimes by serving the Patriot cause.

They often used the pen, as well as the sword, to link the nation’s fight for freedom to their own. The poet Phillis Wheatley, born in west Africa and enslaved in Boston, published a poem in 1772 comparing her enslavement to tyrannical British rule. A group of Black Bostonians presented petitions to the Massachusetts legislature calling for the abolition of slavery, using the language of natural rights and words and phrases from the Declaration of Independence.

Ultimately, Black patriots were betrayed by a new nation that was founded on competing visions of freedom. For Black Americans, liberty did not just mean self-government and freedom from British rule. It also required emancipation, citizenship, and equal rights. While there was gradual abolition in northern states, in the south slavery expanded and the institution was seemingly protected by the federal constitution.

But African Americans refused to accept an interpretation of freedom which excluded them. At Colored Conventions across the country, activists asserted they were true defenders of the Revolution’s principles and, as such, their treatment was a betrayal of those ideals. “The Constitution is Anti-Slavery”, one such convention concluded.

The great orator and formerly enslaved abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, on the anniversary of Independence in 1852, asked: “What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July?” Speaking to his white audience, he explained: “This Fourth July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.”

To the slave, commemorating independence revealed the limits of America’s vaunted liberty and equality.

After emancipation, African Americans used revolutionary principles to demand full citizenship rights. In 1870, Black men were given the vote by the 15th Amendment, and African Americans were afforded the protections and privileges of citizenship. But again they were betrayed, and these rights were dismantled through violence and the erosion of those constitutional protections.

As the strictures of segregation tightened around them, African Americans continued to use memories of American liberty. Black people had always defended American democracy, explained civil rights leader Mary McLeod Bethune in a 1939 speech. “We have given our blood in its defense – from Crispus Attucks on Boston Commons to the battlefields of France,” she said, invoking the spectre of the Black hero of the War of Independence. And yet, for Bethune, Black people fought not for what America was “but for what we know she can be”.

Martin Luther King: cashing the check of justice

It was this belief in a better America that drove many in the Black freedom movement. Standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, 100 years after Emancipation, Martin Luther King Jr not only remembered the slain president’s proclamation, but also the founders who preceded him.

The Constitution and the Declaration of Independence were a “promissory note” that guaranteed all people their inalienable rights, he said. And while the country had defaulted on its promise, King refused to believe “that the bank of justice is bankrupt,” and so he and thousands of others had “come to cash this check”.

The cheque was cashed, for at least some of the balance, with the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 and the Voting Rights Act a year later.

But as America marks its 250th anniversary, the “bank of justice” is looking increasingly short of funds. There is a concerted effort to forget the contradictions of American liberty. The Trump administration is curating a commemoration that emphasises unity and patriotism, with an uncomplicated retelling of the nation’s history, that downplays slavery and racial division.

The Freedom Trucks illustrate Trump’s “Freedom 250” initiative, in which, according to journalist Ed Pilkington, America is represented as a “God-given force for freedom led by Judeo-Christian white men”.

The founding fathers are unreservedly celebrated, with no acknowledgement that some were slave owners. While an exhibit highlights Douglass’s Fourth of July speech, it doesn’t discuss his condemnation of the hypocrisy of celebrating freedom while millions were enslaved.

Black rights under threat

Now the US is poised for another celebration of American exceptionalism. But it’s one that ignores the complexities and contradictions of the nation’s founding. And it’s taking place as the hard-won achievements of the Black freedom struggle are being rolled back, as the Voting Rights Act is gutted, and Black political representation in the south comes under attack.

Just as in the antebellum era of the 1800s, at the height of Reconstruction in the late 19th century, and during the nadir of Jim Crow in the 20th, it is essential that America’s founding is remembered as the beginning of an unfinished struggle for liberty.

And it is important to remember that when they fought in the Revolutionary War (and all the wars that followed), wrote petitions, made proclamations and organised protests, African Americans gave meaning to the nation’s founding principles and documents.

As historian, Annette Gordon-Reed argues, what matters is not Jefferson’s intentions when writing the Declaration, but what others have done to give those words purpose and life.

If the founders did not mean to include them in the Constitution’s preamble, then through their tireless labour, activism, and remembering, African Americans have fought to make sure they too are contained in “We the people”.

Questions have also been raised around whether there was an awareness that Donaldson was allegedly engaged in behaviour in his private life that, although legal, was at odds with positions he adopted publicly.

A review commissioned by the DUP into the behaviour of Jeffrey Donaldson will be “unprecedented” in Northern Ireland, party leader Gavin Robinson has pledged.

Mr Robinson said he would not currently comment on who would lead the independent investigation.

Former DUP leader Donaldson was last week convicted of 18 sex offences, including one count of rape, relating to abuse of two women when they were children.

Subsequent media reports have raised questions about how much was known within the DUP about Donaldson’s wider conduct in the period prior to his 2024 arrest over sex abuse allegations.

BBC Spotlight has reported that some senior DUP figures were aware of another woman, who was not involved in the recent court case, who had raised concerns about Donaldson’s behaviour.

Questions have also been raised around whether there was an awareness that Donaldson was allegedly engaged in behaviour in his private life that, although legal, was at odds with positions he adopted publicly.

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The DUP has commissioned an independent review into issues raised since Donaldson was convicted.

During a press conference at Hillsborough Castle, Mr Robinson was asked to confirm who would be leading the review.

He said he would provide more information when he was “in a position to do so”.

Mr Robinson added: “As you know, I have been as transparent as possible on this process.

“And let me remind you, before you hear more detail about this review, it is unprecedented in Northern Ireland political terms.

“There is no other political party in our history that has ever taken a step like this, and there are many other parties, in even the most recent past, that have had similar issues beside them that hasn’t led to as much scrutiny, or at least the willingness to have as much introspection.

“I don’t shy away from the challenges and I will give you the details when I’m in a position to do so.”

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Mr Robinson has previously said there were current and former members of the DUP who had information about the behaviour in Donaldson’s private life which was not formally shared with the party.

He said: “I am not going to answer what the outcome to a review may be before it starts.

“We have, for a myriad of reasons, for a whole host of reasons and accusations, and some smears, and some politicking along the way too, we have taken the unprecedented step of commissioning a review, so that we can answer these questions.

“Not a reluctance on my part to give you any further detail now. It’s actually a sign of our integrity and the importance with which we place on these issues, that we are going to deal with them seriously, sensibly.

“Bring somebody independent in to do something unprecedented in Northern Ireland political terms.”

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A councillor has told how he rushed to help the teenager who had been stabbed before emergency services arrived.

Tuli Zefi, Reform councillor for Langley Ward, was driving past when he witnessed the incident on Market Street, Oldbury.

Winding down his window, Cllr Zefi says he shouted at a group to ‘pack it in’ before they ran off and left the 19-year-old who had been stabbed, reported BirminghamLive.

He said: “Today (July 2), on my way to the Council House, I witnessed something that no one should ever have to see. At first, I thought a group of young lads were just messing around. I wound my window down and shouted for them to pack it in.

“A group of them ran off, and when I asked the remaining young man if he was okay, he told me he thought he’d been stabbed. I got out of my car, saw the injury, and did what I could to help until the ambulance arrived. I stayed with him, tried to stop the bleeding, and kept talking to him to reassure him.”