Rapper Troy Ave Leaves Hospital Following Shooting
Roland Collins, better known as the rapper Troy Ave, left the hospital on Monday, The New York Daily News reports. He was shot twice on Sunday afternoon while driving with his girlfriend in East Flatbush, New York.
According to Collins’ lawyer, John Stella, the 34-year-old rapper still has two bullets lodged in his body. “He is very sore,” Stella said. “The doctors told the family that he came dangerously close to having a spinal cord injury, but it looks like there’s no lasting damage from the wound track.” Stella suggested that Collins plans to have surgery to remove the bullets at a later date.
In a video posted on Instagram, Collins walked out of the hospital under his own power – arm in a sling, bandage on his head – with a small police escort. In the clip’s caption, he thanked his supporters. “Shot in my head, shot in my back, God is Great,” he wrote. “Ya boi is back from the bottom of my heart thank y’all 4 all the prayers.”
The MC’s lawyer told The New York Daily News that Collins was unable to catch a glimpse of his assailant, and speculated that the attack might be related to a shooting at New York’s Irving Plaza in May that resulted in the wounding of Collins and the death of his bodyguard, Ronald McPhatter. “[Collins] didn’t sense anyone following him at all,” Stella noted. “Was it someone who had an opportunity or a designated interest? We don’t know.”
In August, Collins filed a suit against Irving Plaza and its owner Live Nation, accusing the organizations of failing to provide proper security. He is currently out of jail on $500,000 bail.