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ASAP Rocky to Stand Trial in Sweden on Assault Charge Trump Lashes Out at Sweden Over ASAP Rocky’s Detention
(about 13 hours later)
The rapper ASAP Rocky was charged on Thursday with having committed an assault causing actual bodily harm on June 30 in central Stockholm, Swedish prosecutors said in a statement. In an unusual flexing of diplomatic muscle, President Trump lashed out on Thursday at the prime minister of Sweden over what he said was the unfair treatment of the rapper ASAP Rocky, who was charged with assault earlier in the day after nearly three weeks in Swedish custody.
The prosecution will proceed “despite claims of self-defense and provocation,” the public prosecutor for Stockholm, Daniel Suneson, said in an email. “Give A$AP Rocky his FREEDOM,” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter, further inflaming the international incident that has grown out of the musician’s arrest early this month. “We do so much for Sweden but it doesn’t seem to work the other way around. Sweden should focus on its real crime problem!”
The rapper will remain in custody until a trial begins on Tuesday, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said in a statement. Mr. Trump added that he was “very disappointed in Prime Minister Stefan Lofven for being unable to act.”
The punishment for Rocky could include a fine based on his daily earnings or a maximum two years in prison, a spokeswoman for the Swedish Prosecution Authority, Annika Collin, said in a telephone interview. Rocky was charged on Thursday with having committed an assault causing actual bodily harm on June 30 in central Stockholm, Swedish prosecutors said in a statement, capping weeks of speculation about how the country would handle a street brawl that was captured, at least in part, on camera.
Two members of Rocky’s entourage also face a trial. The rapper will remain in custody, at least until his trial begins on Tuesday, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said in a statement.
The development will sharpen the focus on a case that started as a street brawl, but has ballooned into a diplomatic incident, with Sweden facing accusations of racism and human rights abuses for its treatment of the rapper. The punishment for Rocky could include a fine based on his daily earnings or a maximum of two years in prison, said Annika Collin, a spokeswoman for the Swedish Prosecution Authority.
Rocky, 30, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, is accused of assaulting Mustafa Jafari in Stockholm on June 30 after an altercation in the street that was captured on video. The rapper and two other men were detained on July 5 as prosecutors investigated the matter. The decision to charge Rocky, and Mr. Trump’s increasing ire over the charges, will sharpen the focus on a case that started as a fistfight, but has ballooned into much more, with Sweden facing accusations of racism and human rights abuses for its treatment of the rapper.
Slobodan Jovicic, Rocky’s lawyer, said in a telephone interview on Thursday that the rapper acted in self-defense. On July 2, Rocky posted two videos on Instagram that Mr. Jovicic said show Mr. Jafari and another man following and harassing the rapper, despite being repeatedly asked to stop. Rocky, 30, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, is accused of assaulting Mustafa Jafari in Stockholm after an altercation in the street that was captured on video. The rapper and two other men were detained on July 5 as prosecutors investigated the matter.
But Mr. Suneson, the prosecutor, said Mr. Jafari had been punched, kicked and struck with a glass bottle in an attack that lasted several minutes. Slobodan Jovicic, Rocky’s lawyer, said in a telephone interview on Thursday that the rapper acted in self-defense. On July 2, Rocky posted two videos on Instagram that Mr. Jovicic said show Mr. Jafari and another man following and harassing the rapper, despite being repeatedly asked to stop. In one of his tweets on Thursday, President Trump referred to the videos, “watched the tapes of A$AP Rocky, and he was being followed and harassed by troublemakers.” He also used the hashtag #FreeRocky.
Mr. Suneson said he had more evidence than the video clips that were published to Rocky’s Instagram and on websites including TMZ. That included footage from CCTV cameras and witness statements, he added. But Daniel Suneson, the public prosecutor for Stockholm, said Mr. Jafari had been punched, kicked and struck with a glass bottle in an attack that lasted several minutes. One widely watched video shows Rocky throwing Mr. Jafari to the ground and, along with two members of his entourage who also will face trial, punching and kicking Mr. Jafari.
Mr. Suneson said he had even more evidence against the rapper, including footage from CCTV cameras and witness statements.
Rocky’s case was initially treated as a minor incident, but rapidly escalated after the rapper was detained and tour dates were canceled. Pop stars including Justin Bieber shared a Change.org petition created by Rocky’s team that demanded his release. More than 600,000 people have signed.Rocky’s case was initially treated as a minor incident, but rapidly escalated after the rapper was detained and tour dates were canceled. Pop stars including Justin Bieber shared a Change.org petition created by Rocky’s team that demanded his release. More than 600,000 people have signed.
As the clamor to free Rocky grew, the case went all the way to the White House: On Saturday, President Trump called Prime Minister Stefan Lofven of Sweden to discuss the rapper’s detention. As the clamor to free Rocky grew, the case made its way to the White House: On Saturday, Mr. Trump called Mr. Lofven, the Swedish prime minister, to discuss the rapper’s detention.
Mr. Trump said on Twitter that he had told the prime minister he would “personally vouch” for Rocky’s bail if the rapper were to be released. Sweden has no system of bail, and usually keeps foreigners accused of crimes in detention because of the flight risk. Mr. Trump said on Twitter at the time that he had told the prime minister he would “personally vouch” for Rocky’s bail if the rapper were to be released. Sweden has no system of bail, and usually keeps foreigners accused of crimes in detention because of the flight risk.
Mr. Lofven’s office said in a statement on Saturday that the 20-minute phone call had been cordial but that the prime minister insisted he would not intervene, and “underlined that in Sweden everyone is equal before the law.” There was no response from the Swedish embassy in Washington Thursday evening following Mr. Trump’s latest tweets. But Mr. Lofven’s office said in a statement on Saturday that he would not intervene, and that “in Sweden everyone is equal before the law.”
The storm did not settle despite Mr. Trump’s intervention. “I don’t want to call the race card,” Renee Black, Rocky’s mother, told the gossip site TMZ on Monday, “but that’s what it’s looking like.” “If it walk like a duck and it quack like a duck, then it’s a duck,” she added. The storm has not settled despite Mr. Trump’s attempts to resolve the case. “I don’t want to call the race card,” Renee Black, Rocky’s mother, told the gossip site TMZ on Monday, “but that’s what it’s looking like.”
“If it walk like a duck and it quack like a duck, then it’s a duck,” she added.
Lovette Jallow, a human-rights activist in Sweden and commentator on race issues, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday that “racism in Sweden is very problematic.” “But it is not a case of racism in the ASAP Rocky case,” she added.Lovette Jallow, a human-rights activist in Sweden and commentator on race issues, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday that “racism in Sweden is very problematic.” “But it is not a case of racism in the ASAP Rocky case,” she added.
On Thursday, Expressen, a Swedish newspaper, reported that Mr. Jafari is 19 and comes from Afghanistan. Prosecutors had also investigated Mr. Jafari on accusations of “abuse and assault,” after Rocky’s bodyguard said the man had hit him during the altercation, but that case was dropped on Monday, the Swedish Prosecution Service said in a statement.
Magnus Stromberg, Mr. Jafari’s lawyer, would not confirm his client’s nationality in a telephone interview on Thursday, but said he was an immigrant. “He has only stayed in Sweden for a few years,” Mr. Stromberg said in an earlier phone call.
His client “had no previous knowledge of ASAP Rocky before this incident,” Mr. Stromberg said.
“He is under a lot of pressure and he doesn’t feel secure,” Mr. Stromberg said. “This is not a racist prosecution,” he added. “The prosecutor has analyzed the case thoroughly and handled it impartially.”
Prosecutors investigated Mr. Jafari on accusations of “abuse and assault,” after Rocky’s bodyguard said the man had hit him during the altercation, but that case was dropped on Monday, the Swedish Prosecution Service said in a statement.
The man did hit the bodyguard, the statement added, but in self-defense.The man did hit the bodyguard, the statement added, but in self-defense.
Mr. Jovicic, Rocky’s lawyer, said the rapper was “under a dark cloud,” but added that he and his legal team had “good hope that we will get a result, and get him home soon.”Mr. Jovicic, Rocky’s lawyer, said the rapper was “under a dark cloud,” but added that he and his legal team had “good hope that we will get a result, and get him home soon.”
He refused to consider the possibility that Rocky might be jailed. “Let’s not talk about that now,” he said. “We are preparing for a trial.” He refused to consider the possibility that Rocky might be jailed for a lengthy period. “Let’s not talk about that now,” he said. “We are preparing for a trial.”