Rapper Pooh Shiesty was denied bail following his arrest on Wednesday. He is accused of pulling out an AK-style pistol and forcing Gucci Mane to sign a contract termination – while the label boss was reportedly cornered in a recording studio in Dallas.
Shiesty, real name Lontrell Williams Jr., was booked into a Texas prison after a judge deemed him a flight risk. This emerges from a court order that was signed on Wednesday and shared with ROLLING STONE. The judge ruled that Williams should be remanded in custody because the charges involve the alleged use of a firearm and carry a possible sentence of life in prison. The court also noted that Williams was under house arrest at the time of the alleged incident and did not have permission to be in Dallas.
“Based on the credible evidence presented at the hearing, the court finds that there is reasonable suspicion that the defendant committed the violations of law alleged in the criminal complaint,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Harris Toliver wrote in the order. “The court finds that there is no condition or combination of conditions that the court may impose in this case that would reasonably ensure the appearance of the defendant as required or the safety of the community or any other person upon release.”
Lawyer doubts the allegations
After the hearing, Williams’ longtime defense attorney Bradford Cohen told Fox 4 News he found it “fascinating” that it took federal prosecutors three months to file charges. The delay suggests that investigators had doubts about what is said to have happened in the studio on January 10, 2026 – early witness statements were “highly questionable”.
“It doesn’t take the FBI three months to arrest someone if they believe everything that’s been said,” Cohen said. “There is no contract, this mysterious contract. They have no contract. They have no video of this supposed contract signing. They have no weapons. They have no jewelry. They have no cash. They don’t have any of this physical evidence.”
Williams was charged in a criminal complaint that was unsealed and obtained by ROLLING STONE last week. Prosecutors accuse him of arranging the meeting in Dallas after he became dissatisfied with the terms of his recording contract. The indictment lists Gucci Mane – real name Radric Davis – under his initials RD and describes him as the head of 1017 Records, the label that signed Williams in 2021.
Accusations in detail
According to the indictment, Williams traveled from Memphis accompanied by eight other people, including his father Lontrell Williams Sr. and rapper Big30, real name Rodney Wright Jr. Prosecutors allege the confrontation escalated when Wright retrieved a bag for Williams containing an AK-style pistol and filmed with a cell phone while Davis was ordered to sign contract termination paperwork. With the gun pointed at him, Davis was forced to declare that he was “releasing” Williams from the contract, according to the indictment.
Additionally, investigators allege Williams took Davis’ wedding ring, watch, earrings and cash while Wright blocked the exit and trapped several people in the studio, who were robbed of Rolex watches, jewelry, cash, a Louis Vuitton bag and a wallet with an Apple AirTag inserted. One victim was “choked from behind until he almost lost consciousness,” according to the indictment, which includes photos of scratches on the man’s neck and wrist.
Investigators say a co-defendant, Terrance Rodgers, was later seen in a video on social media wearing a Rolex that they identified as being stolen in the robbery. Another defendant, Demarcus Glover, allegedly shared pictures of himself wearing allegedly stolen jewelry.
Evidence and background
Representatives for Wright and Davis did not respond to requests for comment.
The prosecution said extensive evidence would link Williams to the crime – including data from his ankle bracelet device, which allegedly placed him in the studio at the time in question, thereby proving a violation of his house arrest. Williams was released early from prison last October after serving three of five years for a Miami weapons offense. In that case, he had pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to possess a firearm in furtherance of violent crime and drug trafficking. At the time of the alleged kidnapping and robbery in January, he was under house arrest and prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Authorities say data from license plate readers shows several defendants driving together from Memphis to Dallas; Rental car records show that Williams’ father rented a vehicle used by the squad. Surveillance footage from the studio, a nearby office supply store and a hotel where some of the defendants stayed, as well as fingerprints secured at the crime scene also led to the indictment, investigators said. In addition, the last known location of the AirTag on the stolen wallet was a parking lot next to an apartment that Williams’ father had rented.
All nine defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping, which carries a possible life sentence.
“Nine defendants traveled to Dallas, Texas to kidnap and rob victims who believed they were in town for a business meeting,” Ryan Raybould, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, said in a statement. “Instead of resolving business matters in a civilized manner, the defendants resorted to violence and intimidation to achieve their perceived business objectives.”
