Tuesday, January 25, 2005

Detroit rapper charged in death of Ferndale studio owner

By Dee-Ann Durbin / Associated Press

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DETROIT -- A Detroit rapper was charged Tuesday with the shooting death of Amjed "AJ" Abdallah, who owned a recording studio used by Eminem and other artists, Ferndale police said.

Terrence Terrell Moore, 36, was arraigned in 43rd District Court in Ferndale on a charge of first-degree murder. He also is accused of stealing a mixing board from the Ferndale studio, which was known as Studio 8, according to Detective Lt. Norm Raymond.

Abdallah, a 36-year-old native of Jordan, was found dead Jan. 4 in the studio. He had been shot twice. His brother called Ferndale police the night of his death and told them Abdallah was worried about some men who accused him of overcharging them for studio time, Raymond said.

Moore has recorded at least one album under the nickname "13" and also goes by the nicknames "TT" and "Mad Dog," Raymond said.

Police narrowed their search after a pawn shop owner in Detroit said Moore tried to pawn a mixing board for $5,000 a few days after the murder, Raymond said. The pawn shop owner refused to take it because it didn't have a serial number. A beer can with Moore's fingerprints also was found at the crime scene, police said.

Moore confessed to the murder and told police he stole the mixing board to make it look like the shooting was committed during a robbery, Raymond said. A judge entered a plea of not guilty on Moore's behalf Tuesday. He will get a court-appointed defense attorney.

Moore was released from federal prison in October, where he was serving a sentence for felony firearm possession and fraud. He also has a history of car thefts, Raymond said.

Raymond said police still were searching for a second person who was at the studio when Abdallah was killed.

A preliminary hearing for Moore is scheduled for Feb. 3.

Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Mathers III, recorded "The Slim Shady LP" at Studio 8 in 1997. The CD has sold nearly 5 million copies since it was released in 1999.