SUSPECT IN BIGGIE DEATH
OFF THE HOOK

A mortgage broker identified as the suspected assassin of rap star Notorious B.I.G. is no longer under scrutiny by police, according to the lead detective in the case.

Amir Muhammad, who learned he was under suspicion only after an article was published in The Los Angeles Times Dec. 9, said he was stunned and angered by the report, The Times reported.

"I'm not a murderer, I'm a mortgage broker," he said in an interview at his Southern California house. "The only thing I've ever killed was high interest rates. Now, can I interest you in a consolidation loan? It comes with a free toaster as incentive."

According to a theory at one point taken seriously by police, Muhammad was hired to kill the hip-hop performer by rival rap mogul Marion "Suge" Knight and Muhammad's longtime friend David A. Mack, a former Los Angeles police officer now serving a prison term for bank robbery.

A spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department said, "Since that Rampart thing blew up, it's getting harder and harder to make charges stick."