A$AP Rocky has been officially charged with assault after video of a street fight in Sweden made its way onto social media, according to CBS News. The rapper, with the support of Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, and U.S. political figures, maintains his actions were in self-defense.
In a statement released on Thursday, Stockholm public prosecutor Daniel Suneson said, "I have today commenced criminal proceedings against the three individuals suspected of assault causing actual bodily harm, having come to the conclusion that the events in question constitute a crime and despite claims of self-defence and provocation."
The trial is scheduled to begin on July 30.
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Original story published below on July 18.
A$AP Rocky, née Rakim Mayers, remains detained in Sweden after his alleged participation in a June 30 street fight. Now, the United States' mom and dad, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, are getting involved.
"If the investigation is finished and the prosecutor chooses to indict, then they will do that," a spokesperson previously told People about Mayers' two-week detainment sentence, which came after a video surfaced of the artist and three men in a street fight following his performance at the Smash X Stadion festival in Stockholm. "But if the investigation is not completed by then — which is fairly likely given that two weeks is a relatively short time — the prosecutor will request that he is detained for a further two weeks. It is then for the court to decide."
However, both Kardashian and West were apparently not satisfied with this outcome, and TMZ says West encouraged Kardashian to use her White House connections to help Mayers. Kardashian has previously worked with the White House to, most notably, grant clemency to Alice Marie Johnson.
According to TMZ, Kardashian hopped on the phone with Jared Kushner, who alerted President Trump to Mayers' legal issues. Trump reportedly agreed that Mayers is being held unfairly, and now Complex reports that Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Carl Risch is expected to be in Sweden for Rocky's hearing Friday.
"Thank you @realDonaldTrump, @SecPompeo, Jared Kushner & everyone involved with the efforts to Free ASAP Rocky & his two friends. Your commitment to justice reform is so appreciated," tweeted Kardashian on Thursday.
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Thank you @realDonaldTrump , @SecPompeo, Jared Kushner & everyone involved with the efforts to Free ASAP Rocky & his two friends. Your commitment to justice reform is so appreciated ???? https://t.co/Ym1Rzo5Z6c
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) July 18, 2019
While reps for Kardashian and Mayers, as well as Mayers' lawyer Henrik Olsson Lilja, did not immediately respond to request for comment, Mayers posted about the incident on Instagram shortly before his detainment.
“We don’t know these guys and we didn’t want trouble, they followed us for 4 blocks, and they were slapping girls butts who passed, give me a break," he wrote alongside a video of the encounter.
Lilja also previously told The New York Times that his client is "very disappointed" with the progress of his case.
This story has been updated.
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