Among the wanted individuals is Eugene "Big U" Henley Jr., a longtime leader of the infamous gang now on the run. The examples of misconduct alleged against him are positively explosive: racketeering, murder, fraud, and extortion.
Big U has long been a figure of weight on both the rap game and the streets, emerging as a player guiding artists like Nipsey Hussle while branding himself as a community activist. Yet federal authorities have a vastly different perspective. Henley operated a mafia-like crime syndicate, known as the "Big U Enterprise," between 2010 and now, using his power to commit extortion, human trafficking, and even murder, according to a newly unsealed criminal complaint.
Many of the allegations are gruesomely chilling, including Henley's alleged involvement in the murder of an aspiring rapper known as R.W. in January 2021. Prosecutors say R.W. made a diss track about Henley, leading to his grisly death. Henley purportedly drove R.W. out to North Las Vegas, shot him in the head, and dumped his body in the desert. As if that weren't enough, he later erased security footage at a recording studio and intimidated witnesses into not coming forward, authorities say.
The charges range well beyond violent crimes. Henley is also accused of financial crime, allegedly submitting a fraudulent application for a COVID-19 relief loan for his record label, Uneek Music. According to federal investigators, he lied that the label posted a $200,000 profit in 2019 while it had lost money.
And in a twist that isn't surprising, Henley's charity, Developing Options, which is supposed to provide at-risk youth a path away from gang life, is also under scrutiny. Federal authorities have charged him with embezzling donations intended for the community while still carrying on criminal enterprises behind the scenes. What was supposed to serve as a beacon of hope for South Los Angeles may have turned out to be a front for an ongoing criminal operation?
As of March 19, Henley is still on the run, but two of his alleged associates, Sylvester Robinson and Mark Martin, have been arrested. If found guilty, Henley faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison. This case results from a four-year investigation led by the FBI with the assistance of the IRS Criminal Investigation and various local law enforcement agencies to eradicate organized crime activities in Los Angeles.
"The RICO charges against Mr. Henley and his co-defendants show a pattern of criminal activity ranging from extortion to tax evasion, all part of a well-structured criminal enterprise led by Mr. Henley," said Tyler Hatcher, IRS special agent.
Big U, anointed as hip-hop's "godfather" years ago by the rapper Wiz Khalifa, now stands at the center of one of the largest federal takedowns in recent memory. So one way or another, there's no escaping the walls closing in, and the hip hop world is left to contemplate what exactly Big U's in it for, to uplift community or just part of the game?
0 Comments