DMX Done In by Tipster, Busted in Miami Beach

Tue., Dec. 9, 2008 12:55 PM PST by Josh Grossberg

Nothing like a little FBI bust to harsh one's mellow.

DMX was trying to put in a little quality time at a friend's beachside Miami mansion when he was unceremoniously collared by FBI agents. A warrant has been out for the scofflaw hip-hopster since he ditched a hearing last Friday in Arizona in an animal-cruelty case.

"He was arrested in Palm Island in Miami Beach at a private residence there," FBI spokeswoman Judy Orihuela confirmed to E! News.

The feds took the Year of the Dog rapper into custody upon receiving information from agents in Phoenix and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, which put out a $5,000 reward for his capture and was apparently tipped off to his whereabouts.

According to the rapper's Miami-based attorney, Bradford Cohen, DMX was nabbed at the waterfront estate of Scott Storch, the famed record producer (50 Cent, Jessica Simpson and, um, Paris Hilton), with whom DMX was staying.

"It's not a federal case, and it's highly unusual for someone charged with a third-degree felony to have the FBI execute the warrant," Cohen told E! News. "I think [Maricopa deputies] probably didn't trust the local authorities to get the job done."

Prior to his capture, DMX was at a rehab facility in South Florida, Cohen said. He is currently in Miami-Dade County jail awaiting extradition.

Cohen predicted that Simmons will not be granted bond and will likely remain in lockup for at least 15 days, thanks to a bleep-worthy performance in front of a local judge during a separate case.

"He's going be in front of the same judge that he dropped the F-bomb in front of, so I doubt he'll be getting a bond," Cohen explained. "He said, 'I'm not gonna f--kin' be here in 30 days' or something to that effect.

"My guess is...he'll likely spend 15 to 30 days behind bars before the [Maricopa] sheriff picks him up, and the taxpayers will end up spending more money."

Once he's back in cactus country, he have to explain to another judge why he was MIA from a pretrial hearing. He's facing charges of felony drug possession and seven misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty for allegedly mistreating five pit bull puppies at his residence outside of Phoenix.