Lil' Kim lied to protect friend, says prosecutor

Grammy-winning hip-hop star Lil' Kim lied to a grand jury about a shootout at radio station WQHT in 2001 to protect her former manager and a friend, a federal prosecutor said.

Lil' Kim, whose real name is Kimberly Jones, and her assistant "flat-out lied" by testifying that the manager was not at the station during the fight, in which more than two dozen bullets were fired and one man was wounded, prosecutor Daniel Gitner said.

The manager, Damion Butler, has pleaded guilty to gun charges.Lil' Kim and her assistant, Monique Dopwell, are charged with perjury and conspiracy charges. If convicted, they could get 30 years in prison. Defence attorney Mel Sachs suggested Lil' Kim was traumatised by the gun battle.