Rapper Waving Guns In Deerfield Hotel Music Video Gets 15 Years

CHICAGO — An amateur Chicago rapper was sentenced to more than 15 years in federal prison for illegal gun possession after waving around two of them while recording a music video in a Deerfield hotel. The rapper "Nation" also pleaded guilty to selling drugs to undercover cops, according to court records.

Ricardo Burgos, 31, had more than 50 prior arrests and at least three prior felony convictions by the time the video was filmed, according to prosecutors.

In his guilty plea, the Evanston native admitted having the gun while filming the music video in a crowded Deerfield hotel room. As a convicted felon, Burgos was not permitted to possess a firearm at the time.

Prosecutors pointed out he was also out on bond at the time pending charges of armed robbery, domestic battery and narcotics distribution.

"F--- the cops," begins the video. Burgos appears as a featured artist on a track entitled "With That."

Prosecutors described the song's lyrics as being about "selling drugs, shooting rival gang members, gang banging, and disrespect for law enforcement."

Burgos was arrested two days later on the West Side of Chicago with one of guns seen in the video, prosecutors said. He tossed the weapon as he fled into an apartment building before kicking and punching police as they took him into custody Jan. 8, 2016 in the 5200 block of West Congress Parkway.

Evidence shows Burgos, a member of the Conservative Vice Lords from Clarendon Park, shot a rival gang member shortly before the video was recorded, prosecutors alleged.

Crime lab technicians tested the .45-caliber handgun and determined that it had been used in a shooting that took place a few days earlier, according to the government's sentencing memorandum.

"The very next day," prosecutors said, he recorded the music video "in which he rapped about shooting rival gang members while holding the firearm he used in the shooting the previous day."

Investigators also learned the Springfield Armory semi-automatic pistol had been stolen from a store in Indiana.

Although he was not charged in the shooting, feds said Burgos was stopped in a vehicle matching the description of the shooter.

"Turning up with 30 shots, 50 shots, flee the scene," Burgos raps in the video.

The federal investigation into his activities began in 2015, as undercover law enforcement officers made a series of drug buys from Burgos between September and December.

On six occasions, he sold a combined total of 4 grams of crack cocaine and 1.4 grams of heroin and pleaded guilty to a single count of distribution of a controlled substance.

Burgos admitted to two counts of a seven count indictment — a single charge of illegal possession of a firearm by a felon and one of distribution of a controlled substance.

Michael Krejci, Burgos' attorney, argued for a sentence below the advisory guidelines of 151 to 168 months. Burgos' Army veteran uncle has offered him a job opportunity in a structured setting in Texas when he is released.

Krejci recounted his client's youth spend in foster care, as his parents both struggled with addiction. The defense lawyer noted Burgos is the father of two children, aged 7 and 12. Both of their mothers described him as a loving father with a close bond to his children.

In their request for a 188-month sentence – that's 15 years and 8 months – prosecutors said Burgos has "not learned his lesson and has continued engaging in a life of crime, with no intention of slowing down."

The feds said he was "shown leniency for his criminal activity in the past," pointing to his numerous probation violations. Without any jail time, Burgos "continued to commit crimes despite having been given numerous opportunities to correct his path in life," according to the government's sentencing memo.

U.S. District Judge Ronald A. Guzman agreed with prosecutors and sentenced Burgos to 188 months in prison. He is being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, according to federal prison records.

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