It began with a tweet from the FBI.
Federal authorities revealed on Tuesday they were searching for Brooklyn rapper
Casanova, who’s been charged with racketeering, murder, narcotics, illegal firearms possession and fraud relating to the “Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation” gang based in New York.
The alleged drug conspiracy ran from at least 2010 until the present, involving crack, cocaine and weed, along with fraud charges relating to
COVID-19 relief, according to prosecutors.
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“As the indictment alleges, the violence and drug activity committed by these gang members threatened the safety of our communities and placed innocent lives at risk. Their unabashed criminal behavior, as alleged, included the murder of a 15 year-old and even extended to defrauding programs meant for people suffering economic hardship due to the pandemic. But thanks to the partnership and hard work of all law enforcement agencies involved in this investigation, we were able to stop this violent criminal organization – and show that Gorilla Stone is actually not ‘untouchable,’” FBI New York Assistant Director William F. Sweeney Jr. wrote in a
released statement.
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While the feds listed there were at least 18 members, 17 were already in custody. Casanova, who as of Tuesday had eluded authorities, was singled out in a separate tweet using his full name and photo.
“We are still looking for Caswell Senior, aka Casanova, in connection with this case. He has connections to both NY and NJ. If you have information about his whereabouts, please call us at 1-800-CALL-FBI.”
One social media user tagged Casanova’s last tweet to let him know that the feds were definitely watching.
The 34-year-old rapper, who is signed to
Jay-Z‘s
Roc Nation, routinely used his music as a platform to discuss overcoming his youth that was ridden with a life of crime. In 2006, “he was sent to prison at 19 on a robbery conviction,” his bio on
Roc Nation’s website reads. “He worked construction jobs to take care of his family following his release in 2014, but felt unsatisfied with life.”
Casanova gained traction with the song, “It Go Down When You Trappin,” in 2015, his take on Yo Gotti’s 2015 hit, “Down in DM,” and later released his single “Don’t Run,” in 2016.
Taking a page from the infamous “
no snitching” sound bite by rapper Cam’ron, many Twitter users sided with the notion that Casanova’s whereabouts needed to be protected.
The Black community’s take on snitching is rooted in slavery when slaves were pitted against one another to find favor with their oppressors. Even in Black families, youth are sometimes chastised for being a “tattle-tale.”
Clearly, Casanova’s charges are no laughing matter. But if Black Twitter does nothing else, they will definitely and faithfully find some kind of humor in any situation. Scroll down for proof of that truth.
