50 Cent, who’s had a decades-long contentious relationship with James “Jimmy Henchman” Rosemond, took to Instagram to weigh in on the latter’s double life sentence, as reported by AllHipHop. “See this is why we have to avoid negativity, and keep a positive vibe,” Fifty wrote before referring to Rosemond as a rat.
Since 2013, Rosemond has been in prison serving life for conducting a drug trafficking system. In a year prior to this sentencing, Rosemond was charged with a murder-for-hire plot of Lowell “Lodi Mack” Flectcher. The G-Unit affiliate’s death occurred in 2009 following the 2007 assault of Rosemond’s then-14-year-old son. Rosemond was sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years.
The teen was traveling to his father’s office in New York City to conduct his internship, when G-Unit member Tony Yayo approached him, alongside members of his entourage. The boy was slapped, which proved to be consequential for Yayo who only had to complete 10 days of community service. According to Complex, Fletcher confessed he played a major role in the teen’s assault and carried out a sentence for two years. His release from prison in 2009 resulted in his murder.
Despite remaining one of the prominent suspects in Fletcher’s death, Rosemond told the news site that he’s innocent and never ordered a hit on Fletcher. “When [a contact] told me he had a way to get to Lowell Fletcher, I asked if he could bring him to me,” Rosemond told Complex in 2017. “What these guys went ahead and did was ended up killing Lowell Fletcher, which was not what I asked them to do.” In 2016, Rosemond’s conviction was overturned due to misconduct on the judge’s part, so a re-trial was underway.
Now, AllHipHop published that Rosemond has been handed a double two life sentences for Fletcher’s orchestrated death. The news site also notes this web of controversy was catalyzed by a rift between G-Unit and The Game (Rosemond was his manager), and several shootings in New York City. After the news, the 53-year-old penned an open letter for AllHipHop where he continues to promote his innocence.
“There is a sickness in this system,” he wrote. “My trial was covered up and drown out with unrelated shootings, hip hop gang fairy tales and non-existing ‘rap wars’ that never existed.” Rosemond also said he served as an example for others who tried to elevate their careers.
“When a trial isn’t about fact-finding to elicit the truth and condemn the guilty then it’s not about justice,” he wrote. “My trial was about grabbing a headline and building a prosecutor’s personal career.”
READ MORE: Jimmy Henchman’s Murder-For-Hire Conviction Overturned, New Trial Ordered