New York Post Reports
Superstar rapper 50 Cent is secretly planning to stage a free concert in a schoolyard near the Queens projects where he grew up, and where he was nearly fatally shot -- sparking a wave of fear in the community and prompting cops to prepare for the worst.
"We can't control the area," warned one law-enforcement source, noting that the performance on the grounds of PS 40 in Jamaica will be part of "an outdoor event -- people could walk in from anywhere."
"Someone's gonna try to make a name for themselves," another worried source added. "They're gonna take a shot at him, and they're either gonna hit him or they're gonna miss him and hit some poor, innocent kid or grandmother."
The sources said an army of cops is planning to shut down a massive, 20-block area around the South Jamaica Houses for the "surprise" Aug. 30 concert, which is expected to draw about 10,000 people.
Fitty, who is scheduled to perform at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey the night before, is set to make at an appearance at the neighborhood's "Family Day" on the school's grounds at around 5:30 p.m. He plans to bring celebrity pals with him, the sources said.
The school's yard will be packed with children and their families. There will be a stage set up for Fitty and other acts, and a DJ will be there with a mike and equipment.
The day is being sponsored by the New York Restoration Project, a nonprofit founded by Bette Midler and the G-Unity Foundation, the rapper's charity that supports low-income communities.
But the prospect of massive turnout and the violence that could ensue -- given the bulletproof-vest-sporting rapper's past run-in with gunfire -- already has some families heading for the hills.
Word has leaked out in the community that Fitty is appearing. "When I heard that . . . I wanted to avoid it, so I planned a trip to get away from here that day," said Debbie Lucas, 30, who has two young children.
Although her 11-year-old nephew, Corey, desperately wants to see the Grammy nominee perform, Lucas is shuttling her loved ones to an amusement park for the day.
"I haven't heard anything about any protection or security," she said. "I'm not gonna go, no way."
Fitty, a former crack dealer born Curtis Jackson, was shot nine times in 2000 in front of his grandmother's house blocks away from the proposed show's site. He has also been stabbed.
The South Jamaica Houses, also known as the 40 Projects, have a notoriously bloody history that peaked in the late '80s and early '90s. In January, a city bus driver, who moonlighted as a rap producer, and another man were fatally gunned down just steps away from where the rapper is set to take the stage.
Hundreds of officers -- including cops from the gang and intelligence units -- are expected to descend on the area both in uniform and in plainclothes.
"There's concern because [50 Cent] has already been shot," one source said. "He has a lot of enemies and is very controversial."
And while an NYPD spokesman said there would be "adequate police presence," some local officials fear it won't be enough.
"The concern is the manpower," said Community Board 12 manager Yvonne Reddick. "That's a lot of people . . . The park is surrounded by a residential community."
Organizers deny that 50 Cent will take the stage, but his publicist, Keesha Johnson, said he would make an appearance.
A spokesman from the Parks Department said a permit for the event was expected to be finalized this week but that the paperwork did not indicate there would be a performance.
Meanwhile, even some teens are vowing to stay away.
"There's word out there that there's going to be some shootings," said Mike Terrients, 15. "Some of my friends' parents are saying that they don't want them to go because something is going to happen."
Freddy Fredito, 58, who lives in a two-story home near PS 40, said, "I'm scared already. 50 Cent
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