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Lil Tjay busted in NYC with 4 loaded guns months after he was shot, Internet says 'he needed protection'

Tjay was arrested by NYPD while he was on his way to film with fellow rapper Ice Spice

THE BRONX, NEW YORK CITY: Popular rapper Lil Tjay was busted on Monday, January 16, in the Bronx after being caught with loaded firearms inside the Cadillac Escalade he was riding in, police have confirmed. They pulled over his car over for unknown reasons while he was in the SUV with four friends. 

Police confiscated four guns during the traffic stop at 183rd Street and Ryer Avenue around 4 pm, the NYPD said. The musician, 21, whose real name is Tione Jayden Merritt, was taken into custody along with his four friends. No charges connected to the incident have been announced yet, New York Post reported. 

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Tjay was arrested while he was on his way to film with fellow NYC rapper Ice Spice, TMZ reported. “Video shooot today lol it’s litt,” he wrote in an Instagram story hours ago. The arrest comes months after the rapper was shot multiple times during an attempted robbery at a shopping plaza in Edgewater, New Jersey.

The 'Calling My Phone' star had to undergo emergency surgery following the incident. Bergen County prosecutor’s office released a statement saying Mohamed Konate, 27, was identified as the lead suspect in the shooting. He was charged with three counts of attempted murder, three counts of armed robbery and various other unlawful weapons charges.

'You can’t really blame him'

Social media users pointed out that anyone who has been shot so many times in the past would carry a gun for protection. "Can you blame him? TF. I would have an artillery in the trunk!!!" one user said, while another wrote, "bro got hit 7 times and they worried about him keeping a gun for protection". One user echoed, "Can't blame him for gun possession he was shot 7 times recently".

"Yea it may not be the right legal thing to do but I definitely understand why he had it on him," wrote one user. "He literally was almost on his death bed last year from getting shot. He’s just keeping protection on him, you can’t really blame him," one user wrote, while another said, "Na you got to understand thou he literally just got shot months ago so ion blame em for carrying it but hope that sh** is licensed to him at least".

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.