Almost Three Months Later, Fiddy Meets With Investigators
No word yet on what caused the fire that destroyed his home.
August 25, 2008— -- Hip hop star 50 Cent, who made headlines when his Long Island home burned to the ground in May, has now met with investigators looking into the "highly suspicious" fire. The Suffolk County arson squad confirmed that detectives met with the rapper, whose real name is Curtis Jackson, and two of his attorneys in the afternoon of Aug. 20 in Manhattan.
"There were some ongoing scheduling conflicts that were eventually resolved," said Detective Sergeant Edward Fitzgerald.
ABC News reported in the morning of Aug. 20 that Jackson had not yet met with arson squad investigators. When ABC News contacted Jackson's attorney Brett Kimmel on Aug. 18, he would not comment on whether or not Jackson would be meeting with investigators, but the arson squad said it was contacted by one of Jackson's attorneys on Aug. 19 to confirm they could meet the next day.
"We interviewed him long enough to get all of our questions answered," said Fitzgerald of the meeting, which lasted a little over an hour at one of Jackson's attorney's offices. "Our case is still under investigation and we're still carrying it as a fire of undetermined origin."
A representative for Jackson released a statement saying that he had met with investigators on Wednesday. The statement also said the meeting was arranged weeks earlier.
"The final confirmation occurred the day before," Detective Fitzgerald said, adding that Jackson was cooperative during the meeting.
Kimmel did not return a call from ABC News seeking comment about the meeting, but Jackson's representative said "50 is eager to review the findings of the investigation, when it is concluded."
The attorney for Jackson's former girlfriend Shaniqua Tompkins, who was living in the home at the time of the fire, welcomed the news that Jackson had met with investigators.
"Given the seriousness and suspiciousness of the fire and that lives were endangered, I'm surprised that it took the authorities so long to pin [Jackson] down for an interview," said Catsandonis, who had previously called for Jackson to meet with the squad.
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