47°
Saleem Bligen, 41, had fled when officers responded to a call at an apartment building where he once lived on Bergen Avenue and Mount Vernon Street shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, Lt. Art Jensen said.
Officers Kenneth Knebl, Joe Avila, Christopher Dooley and Lavrone Green searched the nearby business district and found Bligen at a local eatery, the lieutenant said.
Spotting them, Bligen quickly ducked into a bathroom before emerging to speak with Knebl, he said.
Knebl searched the bathroom and found a fully loaded, 9mm Sig Sauer P320 handgun on the window sill, Jensen said.
The officers said they also found a large-capacity magazine and hollow-nosed bullets, along with a small amount of prescription drugs.
Bligen was taken into custody and charged with various weapons and ammunition offenses, including being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
He remained held Friday in the Bergen County Jail while awaiting a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court.
Bligen, who most recently lived in Teaneck, Bligen got his start in freestyle battle rapping by winning several competitions on the MTV series “Fight Klub” in the early 2000s.
He later served several months in a California correctional facility after pleading guilty to charges of pimping, dissuading a witness and assault two years ago.
Authorities in Contra Costa County originally charged him with human trafficking but dropped that count as part of the plea deal.
Bligen "willfully and unlawfully" violated the alleged victim's rights "by forcing her into prostitution," they said at the time.
He was also accused of assaulting the woman, stealing her Lexus and trying to intimidate her into not cooperating with the authorities, according to a criminal complaint.
As part of his plea agreement, he had to pay $6,000 in restitution and stay away from the victim until 2030.
He also told his followers: “I would never force a woman to do anything against her will. That’s not what I was raised as. I’m sorry to my fans, I’m sorry to those who look at this like a disappointment. No one’s more disappointed than me.
“For me to be real with myself, I wasn’t living the most righteous life that I could live…even though my intentions were good, the road to hell is paved with good intentions,” Bligen/Jones said in an audio message to his fans.
Bligen posted a video on his Instagram on Thursday (below) a short time before the arrest.
WARNING: Offensive language, profanity.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Hamilton Township and receive free news updates.
