Authorities raid rap record company in murder investigation

Friday, Nov. 15, 2002 | 8:01 a.m.

By CARRI KARUHN

Associated Press Writer

LOS ANGELES- Trouble followed rap music mogul Marion "Suge" Knight again as authorities raided his office and homes and arrested three of his associates - including a former sheriff's deputy - for investigation of conspiracy to commit murder.

Knight and his record label, formerly known as Death Row Records, have been at the center of an East Coast-West Coast rap feud that some believe was behind the unsolved murders of rappers Tupac Shakur in 1996 and The Notorious B.I.G. in 1997.

However, the raids on Thursday had nothing to do with those deaths, authorities said. Instead, they came in response to the gang-related killing of Eric Daniels on June 7.

"This is strictly a gang-related murder in the city of Compton," said sheriff's Capt. Pete Amico.

Knight is not a suspect in the attack, Amico said, though homes and businesses connected to the impresario were searched in 16 raids that were carried out simultaneously at about 5 a.m. in Southern California and Las Vegas.

A handgun and other evidence in connection with Daniels' killing were seized.

Investigators believe Daniels was shot in retaliation for the April killing of Alton McDonald, 37, a former production manager at Knight's record label.

Theodore Peter Kelly, 29, was arrested at the offices of Knight's label, now known as Tha Row Records. Taken into custody at his Long Beach home was Michael Leroy Payne, 25. Kordell Depree Knox, 37, was arrested at his residence in Compton. All were held without bail.

Authorities said five other people, who were not named, are still being sought. Two people were arrested on drug charges, but they were not related to the ongoing investigation.

Knox is a former sheriff's deputy who was fired on Nov. 1 because of his suspected involvement in an assault with a deadly weapon, said Deputy Alba Yates.

Authorities did not elaborate on Knight's relationship to Kelly and Payne, saying only that they are his associates.

Knight's attorney said his client was being harassed and that authorities went too far in the way they served the warrants.

"They come to his house, they come to his office, they come to every house he's ever lived in that they're familiar with," attorney Arthur Barens said. "They intimidated his wife, they intimidated his employees. What's the point of this?"

During a raid at Knight's Malibu home, Knight's wife was handcuffed but was later released, Amico said. She was not a suspect.

Among the searches, the raid at the label's headquarters near Beverly Hills drew the most attention. A SWAT team stalked the roof with drawn weapons, smashing a glass door and hauling off computer equipment and a dozen cardboard boxes.

Deputies also searched luxury vehicles in the company's lot, including a 2002 Mercedes-Benz SUV and a 2002 Cadillac SUV that are registered to Knight.

The raids were the latest troubles following Knight, who was released from prison last August after serving nearly five years for violating probation by getting into a fight in a Las Vegas hotel. The 1996 altercation occurred just hours before rap star Shakur was killed in a drive-by shooting as he rode with Knight in the promoter's limousine.

Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace, 24, was killed in March 1997 while sitting in his car outside a party celebrating the Soul Train Music Awards in Los Angeles.

Once close friends, the rappers had been feuding for more than a year and had exchanged insults in recordings, at concerts and awards shows.