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Troy Ave Held Without Bail on Attempted Murder Charge, Officials Say

 A judge ordered rapper Troy Ave held without bail pending arraignment on an attempted murder charge.
A judge ordered rapper Troy Ave held without bail pending arraignment on an attempted murder charge.
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Getty Images/Bennett Raglin

UNION SQUARE  — A judge ordered rapper Troy Ave held without bail Monday as he faces an attempted murder charge stemming from a deadly shooting at Irving Plaza last week.

Troy Ave, whose real name is Roland Collins,was arraigned on Monday in New York Criminal Court on charges of attempted murder and two weapons charges, according to a spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney.

Collins is being charged for a shooting at Irving Plaza on May 25 just after 10 p.m. that left his bodyguard, Ronald McPhatter, dead and wounded three others, including Collins, according to the DA.

Collins was rolled into court in a wheelchair, according to news reports. He's being held without bail pending his next court date on June 9.

The 33-year-old rapper, from East New York, was arrested after police released surveillance footage that authorities say shows the rapper limping out of a VIP area on the second floor of Irving Plaza and firing a single shot from a semiautomatic handgun as bystanders cower and leap for cover.

►See Also: Troy Ave Associate Killed in Irving Plaza Shooting Faced Charges in Earlier Shooting in the Flatiron

Police said the shooting portrayed a reckless and wanton display of violence on the part of Collins, but according to his lawyers, he was acting defensively after being attacked

“He’s the real victim here,” Scott E. Leemon, his lawyer, said in court, according to the New York Times. “McPhatter died a hero trying to protect Mr. Collins. He was not shot by Mr. Collins.” 

Leemon also disputed reports from police sources that Collins had shot himself, and said that scientific evidence would show that Collins did not shoot himself, according to the Times.

The shooting apparently stemmed from a dispute between Collins and the rapper Maino, who was performing onstage with rapper Uncle Murda when the gunfire erupted.

Police are still assessing ballistic information to confirm whether it was a shot that Collins fired that killed McPhatter, whom relatives have described as a lifelong friend of Collins, and who was working for Collins the night of the shooting.

Investigators found four shell casings inside the VIP room where the fight appears to have started, and two casings in the balcony area where video showed Collins firing his weapon, one detective testified in a criminal complaint.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the date of Collins' pending Manhattan Supreme Court arraignment, which has not been set.