A con artist, Hatchett (Chris Tucker), is arrested and hand-cuffed to Villard (Gerard Ismaël), an international diamond smuggler. When Villard makes an escape on the way to prison, he takes Hatchett as a hostage, killing anyone who gets in his way. Hatchett escapes before he becomes Villard’s next victim and is determined to clear his name, even though both Villard and the LAPD want him dead. Only the help of a television newsman (Charlie Sheen), who wants exclusive rights to the ‘cop killer’ story, can help him prove his innocence.