The Office of the Attorney General of California has responded to Tory Lanez’s claims that the gun used to shoot Megan Thee Stallion has gone missing.
Last month, Lanez’s attorneys at Unite the People filed a petition, alleging the gun cannot be located and, therefore, cannot undergo forensic or DNA testing.
The Attorney General of California’s response outlines how the incarcerated artist’s attorneys have failed to provide any evidence to support their false assertions that the LAPD misplaced the gun.
“Petitioner has not satisfied his burden of providing reasonably available documentary evidence that would support his factual assertions. His failure to do so is especially significant in this case because his unsupported claim that the LAPD has misplaced or lost evidence is demonstrably false,” court documents obtained by Complex state
“Nevertheless, respondent notes that additional DNA testing in this case could not possibly establish a claim of actual innocence.”
The Attorney General’s filing also included a declaration from the LAPD affirming that the gun remains in its custody, directly refuting Lanez’s claims.
“Petitioner fails to provide reasonably available documentary evidence to support his factual assertions," the court docs state. "His failure to do so is especially troubling because his factual assertion that the firearm, casings, and bullet fragments are ‘missing’ is contradicted by the attached declaration from Martin Preciado, which avers that his query of the computer system for the Los Angeles Police Department (‘LAPD’) shows that LAPD still has custody of the firearm and the firearm’s magazine, as well as the casings and fragments that were booked into evidence.”
In a recent appellate filing, Lanez’s attorneys accused prosecutors of a “failure to produce and preserve evidence” and requested that his 10-year prison sentence be vacated. In late October, Megan Thee Stallion’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, rejected Lanez’s allegations about the missing gun. Spiro told Meghann Cuniff of Legal Affairs and Trials that the gun and its ammunition are “there and available” to be tested. Rumors have also circulated suggesting that Lanez has been declared innocent, which Spiro previously called "completely false."