The mother of a young teenager that claims he was assaulted by G-Unit rapper Tony Yayo and an associate has spoken out against court proceedings today, which saw criminal charges against the rapper dismissed.
Yayo and an associate named Lawell Fletcher pled guilty today (February 14), for their roles in an altercation in which the young son of music executive Jimmy “Henchmen” Rosemond was backhanded.
Lawell will do nine months in prison, while Yayo, born Marvin Bernard, will do 60 days of community service for his role in the March 2007 assault on the child, which took place on 25th Street in New York, as he walked to his internship at Czar Entertainment.
The boy’s mother Cynthia Reed labeled Yayo’s crime against a minor as “despicable.”
“As much as Marvin Bernard tried to wiggle his way out of his role in assaulting my son, who is a minor, he had to accept responsibility to accept a plea deal,” Ms. Reed stated. “He couldn’t hide behind 50 Cent, G-Unit, Violator management or his co-defendant. This malicious crime against a child is despicable and any industry sponsor or company that supports individuals like Tony Yayo should remove themselves from a relationship with him and his affiliated entities.”
Ms. Reed demanded an apology from rap superstar 50 Cent, who denied that Yayo was involved in the incident.
In April of 2007, 50 Cent released a statement condemning the attack and claimed he was launching an investigation into the incident.
“Crimes against children should never be legitimized just because a person is an entertainer,” said Reed, who led a number of public demonstrations denouncing the rapper and his G-Unit brand last year.
“A public apology is appropriate at this time, not only from Tony Yayo but from 50 Cent for denying this event ever happened— as if my son was lying when all along they knew this assault had taken place,” Reed said.