Amir Muhammad, also known as Harry Billups, is a prime suspect in the death of Biggie Smalls, so where did these theories stem from?
March 9, 2023 marks 26 years since the death of hip-hop icon Biggie Smalls. The 24-year-old rapper was killed in a drive-by shooting when leaving an afterparty at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. Despite being one of the most well-known cases of celebrity death, no one has been charged for the murder of The Notorious B.I.G and the case remains officially unsolved.
Amir Muhammad is one of the reported suspects involved in the murder – read on to know more about his alleged links to the case.
How did Biggie Smalls die?
At about 12:45am on March 9, 1997, Biggie’s Chevrolet Suburban stopped at a red traffic light. Inside his vehicle was his entourage, including Junior M.A.F.I.A rapper Lil’ Cease, Damion “D-Roc” Butler, and Gregory “G-Money” Young. Biggie’s friend and record label boss, Sean “Diddy” Combs, was in the vehicle behind.
A black Chevrolet Impala pulled up alongside Biggie’s car and the perpetrator fired four bullets at the Brooklyn native. According to the autopsy report obtained by TMZ, it was the final bullet that tragically ended his life and glittering career. The report was released in 2012, more than 15 years after his death.
The fatal bullet entered his right hip and tore through several organs, including his liver, lung, and heart. The other bullets injured Biggie – real name Christopher George Latore Wallace – in his left forearm, his back, and his left thigh.
He is survived by his mother, Violetta, and his two children, T’yanna and CJ Wallace.
Who killed Biggie Smalls? Amir Muhammad is a suspect
Initial theories speculated the murder was in relation to the death of Tupac Shakur six months prior, given the similarity of the attack and the East Coast-West Coast hip-hop feud. 2Pac was struck in a drive-by traffic light shooting in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996. There was no evidence to prove they were connected.
Amir Muhammad has been named as the alleged shooter on several occasions. In 2002, a $400 million civil lawsuit against the LAPD and the city of Los Angeles for wrongful death and federal civil rights violations was filed by the Wallace estate. It also identified Amir Muhammad as the alleged gunman. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2010.
Sean Combs’ bodyguard, Big Gene, also reportedly circled out Muhammad during a meeting with FBI agent Phil Carson, confirming witness statements.
FBI informant Michael “Psycho Mike” Robinson allegedly told Carson that Muhammad admitted he was the one who shot Biggie Smalls during a 1998 party, as reported by The Daily Beast. Muhammad, however, denied attending a party with Robinson and making the confession.
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The FBI shut down the case as there was insufficient evidence for an indictment against Muhammad and the LAPD.
In 2021, discussions over the case resurfaced online after Carson alleged that “all the evidence points to Amir Muhammad” as the gunman in sealed court documents. He claimed to the NY Post that Muhammad was a hired hitman and had “evidence that LAPD officers were involved” too.
Muhammad has never been charged with anything connected to the murder.
Muhammad is a mortgage broker and denied any involvement
Muhammad, real name Harry Billups, was a student at the University Of Oregon, who graduated in 1984. He was last reported to be a real estate broker in Georgia by the Post. He allegedly changed his name when he joined the Nation of Islam but reportedly reversed his identity back to Billups. Muhammad denied any involvement in Biggie’s murder, claiming to the LA Times that he is “not a murderer, I’m a mortgage broker.”
The LA Times identified Muhammad as a suspect in a December 9, 1999 report, leaving him outraged as he called the story “completely false.”
“The fact is the police have never talked to me,” he responded in May 2000. “And the reason they haven’t is because I had nothing to do with this horrible crime.
“The story made it sound like I was some mystery assassin who committed this heinous crime and then just dropped off the face of the Earth – which is the furthest thing from the truth,” he added.
The case remains unsolved and there has been minimal activity for a number of years.
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