Thug Life Army

The 2001 murder case of Eric (E Money Bags) Smith, for which Kenneth (Supreme) McGriff is charged with ordering the murder, is preparing to go to trial.

Federal investigators are also looking into Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff, (who served 10 years in prison for running a notorious crack ring in Queens and is currently serving a 37 month sentence for weapons possession); and his relationship with hip-hop rap mogul Irv "Gotti" Lorenzo and Gotti’s Inc. Records.

The hip-hop rap record-label chief and McGriff are suspected of funneling proceeds from McGriff's cocaine and heroin operation to The Inc., according to court documents filed in support of recent search and property seizure warrants.

The videotape taken of aspiring rapper, Eric (E Money Bags) Smith, on the day he was murdered in the summer of 2001 in his sport-utility vehicle on a street in Queens; has been edited to ensure a "G" rating by officials at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn.

Two copies of the tape are on file at the federal lockup in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, so defendants charged in the 2001 slaying can view it in preparation for trial. The tape is evidence in the case against them.

But Metropolitan Detention Center officials ordered the deletion of a scene at the beginning of the video depicting women in bathing suits, according to a letter filed by Assistant Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Carolyn Pokorny.

The sexy scene was shot at a swimming pool, according to a source familiar with the tape.

"If your clients wish to review the complete videotape, please contact me and we will arrange for them to do so at our office," Pokorny wrote to the defense lawyers in the case.

Robert Simels, who represents Kenneth (Supreme) McGriff, who is charged with ordering the murder, said he was not surprised by the government censorship.

A company called Picture Perfect, which was owned by McGriff's sister, was involved in a venture to sell still photographs of women to inmates until the Bureau of Prisons put an end to that.

"I guess it's too racy," Simels said. "They don''t want them to be sexually stimulated in jail. But I will inquire of my client to see whether he wants to see the unedited version of the video."

A spokeswoman for the Bureau of Prisons did not return a call for comment.

After the bathing suit scene, the videotape is a key piece of evidence against McGriff and two other defendants who could face the death penalty if convicted of Smith's murder. The victim was killed in a hail of gunfire as he sat in his Lincoln Navigator on 111th Road in Laurelton. The video does not record the actual shooting.

The video, recovered one month later inside a drug stash house in Maryland, was allegedly made by Nicole Brown from the window of her apartment which faced the crime scene. Brown and her boyfriend, Dennis (Divine) Crosby also are charged with the fatal shooting and they are being held without bail at the MDC along with McGriff.