Bobby Shmurda (born Ackquille Pollard) and members of his GS9 crew appeared in court today for the first hearing since his Dec. 17 arrest. Pollard along with fellow Epic Records signee Rowdy Rebel and 13 other members each plead not guilty to all charges in the Manhattan Supreme Court hearing that lasted more than three hours, XXL reports.
According to XXL's description of the scene, at least 50 people, including Epic Records reps and family members, were present during the proceedings. One by one, each defendant sat before Judge James Burke and plead not guilty. Their lawyers' petitions for reduced bail were denied and will not be considered again until the judge delivers his decisions at their next court appearance, which is set for April 22.
Pollard's bail is set at $2 million, an amount that his new attorney Kenneth Montgomery (who took over for Howard Greenberg) called "extremely unfair." His lawyer also questioned the prosecution's position that Pollard was a leader in this alleged operation.
As previously reported, Pollard and his GS9 crew were indicted on Dec. 18, after being arrested outside Quad Studios in Manhattan the night before. The indictment included 69 charges including murder, attempted murder, assault, attempted assault, weapons possession, criminal use of a firearm, reckless endangerment, narcotics sales, and criminally using drug paraphernalia. If convicted, Pollard could face 25 years in jail.
Earlier today, we clarified previous reports about Pollard's gun charge. Although the charge was technically dropped by the Brooklyn D.A.'s office, Pollard will still face his gun charges. The dismissal was only made because of a procedural step that allows the charge to be included in the larger Special Narcotics case. The Brooklyn gun charge is tied to an arrest made by the police where they found a fun on Pollard after obtaining a search warrant in June 2014.
His incarceration hasn't stopped him from making music, however. Earlier this week, he was featured on the intro for "Computers (Remix)" by Migos, a cut from their upcoming Shmigo Gang tape, which he recorded behind bars.
We'll keep you updated on this case as it develops.
