LOS ANGELES — Alleged Los Angeles gang leader and so-called rap "godfather" Eugene Henley Jr., known as "Big U," pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges contained in a 43-count federal indictment accusing him of racketeering, fraud, extortion and embezzlement.

Henley, 58, surrendered to authorities last month in connection with a federal complaint that also linked him to the 2021 killing of an aspiring rapper in Las Vegas.

The indictment charges Henley with a single count of conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, along with multiple counts of robbery, extortion, wire fraud and embezzlement, among other charges.

A trial date of May 20 was scheduled, but that is expected to change. A detention hearing is set for Thursday.

Before he surrendered to authorities, the self-described anti-gang activist from the South LA community of Hyde Park posted videos on Instagram denying any wrongdoing.

"I'm looking at all these charges in the news," he said. "I'm heading back to LA. Ain't going to be no real evidence. Ain't going to be no real nothing ... Now, they're saying all that stuff to assassinate my character."

According to federal prosecutors, Henley is a leader of the Rollin' 60s Neighborhood Crips and runs a vast, "mafia-like" organization that has committed crimes including murder, trafficking and COVID fraud.

Six others allegedly linked to the case were also arrested.

"As the indictment alleges, Mr. Henley led a criminal enterprise whose conduct ranged from murder to sophisticated fraud that included stealing from taxpayers and a charity," Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally said in a statement last month. "Eradicating gangs and organized crime is the Department of Justice's top priority. Today's charges against the leadership of this criminal outfit will make our neighborhoods in Los Angeles safer."

Prosecutors contend that Henley killed Las Vegas rapper Rayshawn Williams in January 2021, saying the victim — who had been signed by Henley's Uneek Music record label — had recorded a defamatory song about Henley. Henley allegedly killed him "then dragged the victim's body off Interstate 15 in Las Vegas and left it in a ditch," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Henley is also accused of defrauded famous athletes, including Basketball Hall of Famer and former Laker Shaquille O'Neal and Golden State Warriors four-time all-star forward Draymond Green, by persuading them to donate money to charity — cash that he allegedly pocketed himself.

In addition, Henley is accused of fraudulently obtaining funding from the Gang Reduction and Youth Development program supervised by the LA Mayor's Office.

According to an affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, from 2010 to the present, Henley's Big U Enterprise "operated as a mafia-like organization that utilized Henley's stature and long-standing association with the Rollin' 60s and other street gangs to intimidate businesses and individuals in Los Angeles. Henley is widely regarded as a leader within the Rollin' 60s and rose to prominence in the street gang during the 1980s."

Henley was instrumental in launching the career of the late Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was shot to death in South Los Angeles in 2019.

Authorities also allege Henley submitted a fraudulent application for a COVID-19 pandemic relief loan in which he claimed that Uneek Music was operating at a $200,000 profit in 2019 despite operating at a $5,000 loss that year, which should have disqualified it from loan eligibility.

Henley served 13 years in prison for trying to steal cocaine from an undercover sheriff's deputy in 1991. His son, Daiyan Henley, is a linebacker entering his second season with the Los Angeles Chargers.

If convicted, Henley could face hundreds of years in prison, prosecutors noted.