According to federal authorities, Isaiah Duke, also known as Lil Zy Osama, and other colleagues took an Uber from a Manhattan hotel to a recording studio in Queens on Thursday. According to the criminal complaint, the driver noticed Duke, 25, handling a gun in the back seat during the ride.
When the passengers disembarked, the Duke allegedly left a.40 caliber Glock pistol behind. Lil Zy Osama performs in the Tabernacle at the G Herbo In concert on November 27, 2021, in Atlanta, Georgia. (WireImage/Prince Williams).
The driver contacted legal authorities, who located him at a drop-off location. Authorities claimed they recognized the passengers shortly after, and Duke, a convicted felon who served time in jail for weapon possession, was detained.
Investigators later found that the firearm had already been altered with a switch device that was supposed to allow it to function like a machine gun, firing more than one round with a single trigger pull. According to prosecutors, the gun "has the capability of firing until the trigger is raised."
Officials also discovered one round in the room and nine rounds in the magazine. According to officials, the gun was manufactured outside of New York State.
In a statement to a federal judge, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Schuman asked for Duke's arrest: “The defendant — a convicted felon — carried a loaded pistol affixed to a switch device, causing the gun to be presented as a machine gun. The defendant poses a threat to the community by virtue of his possession of a particularly dangerous firearm.”