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Police: Philadelphia Rapper Beanie Sigel Shot In South Jersey

PLEASANTVILLE, N.J. (CBS) — Philadelphia rapper Beanie Sigel is in serious condition this evening after being shot Friday morning at his home in South Jersey, police said.

The shooting happened at about 9:30am at Sigel's home on the 800 block of Spruce Avenue in Pleasantville, NJ.

According to investigators, Sigel, whose birth name is Dwight Grant, was shot in the abdomen and the bullet exited through his back.

"Shell casings and ammunition were found outside but when we got there (Sigel) was inside the house," said Pleasantville Police Chief Jose Ruiz.

Sigel was taken to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center where he underwent surgery.

Chief Ruiz says it appears there was an altercation but the details surrounding the shooting are still unknown and police are waiting for Sigel to wake up so that they can question him.

"Everything is contingent on (Sigel) speaking to us. Other than that nobody was out there," said Chief Ruiz.

Following the shooting, police took a man into custody for questioning after a car chase led them to believe the male driver may be connected to the shooting. The man's name has not been released as authorities try to determine whether he was involved.

"It is a very quiet neighborhood and the neighbors are pretty concerned so I want to be able to address their concerns by hopefully making an arrest," said Chief Ruiz.

A second man, Umar Salahuddin was not seriously injured but was involved in some capacity. Police say Salahuddin refused medical treatment and refused to talk to police about what happened.

Salahuddin is Sigel's brother-in-law and also lives at the Spruce Avenue house.

Police say Salahuddin was recently released from prison and has numerous felonies.

The 40-year-old Sigel, a former prodigy of rapper Jay-Z, was released from jail in August after serving a two-year sentence on federal tax evasion charges.

After his August prison release Siegel was moved to a halfway house until September when he was allowed to return to his Pleasantville home with a monitoring bracelet.  The sentence ends Saturday.

Sigel has a lengthy criminal and felony history including federal weapons charges, conspiracy and multiple drug charges.

He landed himself in the hospital with gun shot wounds in 2006 after he was shot multiple times during a Philadelphia robbery.

Friday's shooting remains under investigation.

CBS 3 Eyewitness News' Charlotte Huffman and KYW Newsradio's Kim Glovas contributed to this report.

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