Rapper Kodak Black arrested at U.S. border after guns and weed found, police say
Rapper Kodak Black was arrested Wednesday night near Niagara Falls, N.Y., after he and friends were trying to cross the border from Canada and admitted they had marijuana and firearms in their two vehicles, police said.
The 21-year-old, whose real name is Bill K. Kapri, was driving two friends in a Cadillac Escalade across the Lewiston-Queenston International Bridge, followed by a Porsche with three people inside, according to New York State Police, who were called in by border agents at 7:20 p.m. Eastern time.
A Glock 9mm handgun that was not registered to Black or his passengers was found in the car, and marijuana was found on the rapper, police said in a statement Thursday. He was charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and unlawful possession of marijuana, as was Jeantony Saintmelus, 22, the other driver. Saintmelus admitted having two loaded handguns, and a third gun was found in the trunk of the car along with marijuana, officers said.
Black’s passengers Stetson J. President, 24, and Madarrow D. Smith, 20, were charged only with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, police said.
The “Wake Up in the Sky” rapper, who is from Miramar, Fla., was remanded to Niagara County Jail with bail set at $20,000 cash or $40,000 bond. He posted bond and is due back in court in May, police said.
He was previously released from jail in Broward County, Fla., on Aug. 18, 2018, after doing time on a pair of probation violations, the Blast reported. Black’s criminal history is a complex one, resulting in a number of court cases.
The rapper was scheduled to perform Wednesday night in Boston, about 400 miles away from where he was arrested. The House of Blues Boston tweeted around 6:30 local time that his shows at 5 and 9:30 p.m. had been canceled “due to unforeseen circumstances” and, according to Boston’s WBZ, posted signs at the venue as well.
A couple of hours later, Boston police responded to a call complaining about a crowd that was “displaying generally unruly behavior as a result of a canceled show,” the TV station reported. One man was arrested after allegedly assaulting a security guard, and two people were hospitalized.
Kodak Black’s tour schedule had included a show Thursday night at the Foxwoods Resort in Mashantucket, Conn., but that has also been canceled, according to the resort’s website. A show set for Friday night at the Met Philadelphia was still on the books in that city.
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