50 Cent comments on Yayo’s assault charge

50 Cent has remained relatively quiet since Tony Yayo’s alleged assault of music executive Jimmy "Henchman" Rosemond’s 14-year-old son. The rapper did issue a statement through his lawyer that he wasn’t present during the assault. Over the weekend, 50 Cent released an official statement about the incident. He said, "As CEO of G-Unit Records, I take allegations swirling in the media regarding the alleged altercation against a teenage boy on Tuesday March 20th in Manhattan very seriously. I have authorized an independent investigation of the incident to determine whether anyone associated with G-Unit Records was involved in the confrontation. I must state for the record, that I was at my home in Farmington, Connecticut the entire day completing songs for my new album."

The rapper added, "A word of caution to anyone attempting to link me personally to this unfortunate incident for their own selfish motivations. I will vigorously pursue all legal remedies available to me to protect my professional reputation."

Yayo, whose real name is Marvin Bernard, was arrested and charged with assault and endangering the welfare of a child. The rapper allegedly confronted the teen after noticing him walking down a city block wearing a Czar Entertainment sweatshirt. There have been some reports that 50 Cent was present during the incident.

Russell Simmons and the Hip Hop Summit Action Network initially released a statement that they would participating in a grievance rally with Al Sharpton and Rosemond on Monday, April 2nd, to condemn Yayo’s action, but Simmons and his group pulled out. Simmons issued a statement that read, "Russell Simmons, Dr. Benjamin Chavis and the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN) will not participate in the press conference being called for Monday, April 2nd, by Czar Entertainment and Cynthia Reed, mother of Jimmy Henchman’s son. HSAN is impartial and will not take sides in this dispute. Russell Simmons and Dr. Benjamin Chavis hope the issues between Tony Yayo and Jimmy Henchman and Czar Entertainment will be resolved peacefully and as soon as possible."

According to 50 Cent’s manager Chris Lighty, Rosemond is seeking $1 million from 50 Cent to resolve the matter.