The Infamous...Kelvin "50 Cent" Martin

by Ran

Kelvin Darnell Martin was born July 24, 1964 in the South Bronx, NYC. His childhood nickname was Lil' Shaft. When Martin was eight years old his parents separated and according to relatives, his mother pinned a note to his shirt, placed him on a bus and sent him to live with his grandmother. While a teenager, Martin was displaced yet again when the family left the Bronx permanently and moved into subsidized housing in the borough of Brooklyn. Martin would call unit 11-H of Building A in the Monument Walk section of the Raymond V. Ingersoll Houses his new home. Not long after, he was introduced to Islam by way of the Five Percent Nation and adopted the name Shameek.

Martin's criminal activities as a teenager earned him a stint at Riker's Island in the C-74 juvenile detention center where he would meet other future career criminals such as convicted drug trafficker, James "Jimmy Henchmen" Rosemond*. 

After his release and return to Brooklyn, Martin is said to have aligned himself with the Supreme Team street gang, based in Fort Greene (not to be confused with the Jamaica, Queens-based drug organization). It was around this time that Martin obtained the nickname "50 Cent". There is some dispute as to how he acquired the name. Some attribute the name to his greed -- attesting to the idea that he would rob someone for any amount of money, no matter how little the sum. One rumor has it that Martin once entered a dice game with only a 50 cent stake and ultimately won $500. Still others believe the name to be an allusion to his slight size.

Martin was known to be armed at all times with his two favorite long-barrel handguns -- a Colt .45 and a .357 Magnum. Martin declined to become a drug dealer in the then-relatively new crack cocaine trade, instead preferring to obtain money through strong-arm robbery. He would soon go on to assemble the collective known as "Brooklyn Zoo" - a group of teens who reportedly targeted blue collar workers, college students, liquor stores, pimps and especially, intoxicated club patrons for robbery. They collected cash from fencing designer purses and gold chains stolen from partygoers at the Latin Quarter, Harlem World and the Roxy nightclubs in Manhattan. They were also known to have preyed on customers and event attendees at the Brooklyn Armory, the Empire Skating Rink and Albee Square Mall in Brooklyn. Martin is said to have attended a Rick James concert at The Meadowlands concert stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey just so that he could rob other fans in attendance.

Martin gained widespread notoriety after allegedly robbing several members of the hip hop industry. His victims included members of the rap group Whodini and a teenaged James "LL Cool J" Smith. Reportedly, Martin approached Smith in the parking lot of a White Castle fast food restaurant in Brooklyn and appropriated the young star 's solid gold rope chain at gunpoint.

According to locals, Martin also had a violent run-in with Jason "Jam Master Jay" Mizell of Run-D.M.C. A confrontation between his Brooklyn Zoo crew and Mizell resulted in a shootout between Martin's group and the "Hollis Crew", a "stick-up" gang from Mizell's neighborhood.

Martin's association with rappers wasn't always criminal or even hostile. Eric Barrier of Eric B. & Rakim was a friend of Martin. The two developed a friendship in 1986 and became so close that Martin became a member of the Paid in Full Posse, which also consisted of members: William "Rakim" Griffin and Eric "Eric B." Barrier; Barrier's brother, Ant Live; Griffin's cousin, Jason Riley; Rob Garcia; Keith "Money" Green; Supreme Magnetic and his brother, Rap; AJ; and Benjamin "Killer Ben" O'Garro. Martin was featured in a photo with other members of the Paid in Full Posse(alongside the rap duo and other rappers and criminals) on the back cover of Eric B. & Rakim's debut album, Paid In Full. It's title song ironically recounts the lifestyle embraced by Martin that Rakim avoided by pursuing a hip-hop career.



 

Kelvin "50 Cent" Martin (below right, wearing a red Adidas hat) posing in a

picture featured on Eric B & Rakim's debut album Paid In Full

Martin's main robbery targets were allegedly drug dealers and their stashhouses. His modus operandi expanded to include kidnapping and extortion as well. Martin would offer protection against robberies, violence, vandalism and other forms of assault to local store owners and drug dealers in exchange for regular cash payoffs. Those who turned down this arrangement would find themselves the victims of said assaults, which were perpetrated by Martin himself. Martin's robbery and extortion proceeds afforded him a place of distinction as the owner of a custom gold-colored Volkswagen Jetta. Martin's penchant for carrying out his assaults without attempting to conceal his identity garnered him several enemies. In addition to being stabbed numerous times it's estimated that Martin was shot at least 24 times in 9 separate incidents. Despite having never been indicted for murder, he is also believed to have killed 30 people.

Because people were trying to kill him, Martin enlisted in the army. Eventually, he was given an honorable discharge and sent back from Georgia to New York to face robbery charges after being arrested by NYPD detectives at Fort Benning after completing basic training.

Upon his return to New York Martin moved into girlfriend Precious Golston's apartment in the Albany Houses housing project located in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. Shortly after the move, Martin was shot while at the Albee Square Mall and as a result took to wearing a bulletproof vest.

Martin's favorite weapons - a long barrel

Colt .45 and .357 Magnum revolver

Ultimately, and despite his penchant for wearing body armor, gunshot wounds were his cause of death. He was shot on October 20, 1987 on the stairway of his girlfriend's project building in the Albany Houses and died from hemorrhaging in Kings County Hospital four days later, according to the autopsy. He was 23 years old. Paid in Full was released 3 months earlier on July 7, 1987. A former associate, Julio "Wemo" Acevedo, was convicted of first-degree manslaughter and sentenced to a minimum of eight years in prison for Martin's killing. Acevedo maintained that he was coerced into committing the killing by enemies of Martin who'd kidnapped a close family member and threatened to murder both Acevedo and his family if he refused.

The then 18-year-old Acevedo and member of Martin's crew is reported to have come by the 13th-floor apartment before leaving with Martin around 10 p.m. the night he was fatally shot. Martin apparently felt secure enough with Acevedo that he chose not to wear his bulletproof vest. Martin was found later that evening on the seventh-floor landing bleeding from wounds to the head, chest and stomach.

Despite all of the considerable wealth Martin accrued from his criminal exploits during his life, his family was only given his gold teeth upon his death. According to relatives, his safety deposit box and usual stash spots were found completely empty after his demise. In keeping with the common practice at the time for New Yorkers who couldn't afford local burial, Martin's body was sent from Brooklyn to Staten Island and he was interred in a mass grave with four other people.

Initially, Acevedo was convicted of murder but his conviction was overturned when a corroborating witness supported his claim of being coerced into killing Martin. He accepted a manslaughter conviction and was awarded a sentence of time served based on an informant's testimony*. 

Julio "Wemo" Acevedo, taken March 4, 2013

During his time on the street, Martin is said to have served as a mentor to Brooklyn gangster Calvin "Calvin Klein" Bacote, who is rumored to have inspired some of the lyrics of then-aspiring rapper Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter.

After his death, Martin served as an inspiration to Queens, NY native and rap superstar Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson who adopted his moniker in an effort to solidify his street credibility. Initially, Martin was buried without a tombstone but according to family members, Jackson volunteered to finance one as a token of respect and appreciation for Martin's legacy. Martin's family alleges that Jackson ultimately reneged on the promise and revealed that his $9,000 unique, red granite monument was paid for by Martin's old friend James "Jimmy Henchman" Rosemond.


Martin garnered a reputation for walking -- not running -- away from his robbery scenes. He was said to have never  even used a getaway vehicle.






 

* In 2012 Rosemond would be convicted in a major drug-trafficking case and more notoriously -- be implicated for ordering the shooting of Tupac Shakur in 1994. During his stay in juvenile corrections Martin was given the nickname "the Little Bastard" by other inmates as a nod to both his aggressiveness and small stature.

* Julio "Wemo" Acevedo was released in 1997 before being arrested 12 days later for robbery. After a history of legal issues over the years, Acevedo would eventually be arrested on March 6, 2013 after turning himself in to authorities following an incident in which he allegedly fled the scene after driving a BMW into a cab carrying a young couple in Brooklyn. The man and his expectant wife (Nachman and Raizel Glauber) were killed at the scene while their baby boy who was delivered prematurely, died later.

Kelvin "50 Cent" Martin and Rap

Related:

The Infamous..."Calvin Klein" Bacote






The Infamous...James "Jimmy Henchman" Rosemond