Harlem-born A$AP Rocky‘s trial in Stockholm ended today (August 2, 2019) and the court ruled he could leave Sweden while awaiting the outcome of the verdict, which will be handed down on August 15th. Rocky (real name Rakim Mayers) and his co-defendents, David Rispers and Bladimir Corniel, immediately returned to the United States, according to a U.S. State Department official.
In a post following his release, Rocky wrote, “THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART TO ALL OF MY FANS, FRIENDS AND ANYONE ACROSS THE GLOBE WHO SUPPORTED ME DURING THESE LAST FEW WEEKS I CANT BEGIN TO DESCRIBE HOW GRATEFUL I AM FOR ALL OF YOU THIS HAS BEEN A VERY DIFFICULT AND HUMBLING EXPERIENCE I WANT TO THANK THE COURT FOR ALLOWING ME BLADI AND THOTO TO RETURN TO OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL OF THE LOVE AND SUPPORT.”
Mayers has been in custody since July 3rd when he and his two companions turn themselves in for assaulting a man on the streets of Stockholm three days earlier.
While there was vocal support of Rocky during the trial from prominent members of the rap community, including Kanye West who advocated on his behalf to the Donald Trump, response to his jailing drew a mix response. Frequently it was pointed out that Rocky in 2017 had dismissed support of the Black Lives Matter movement, an effort he described as “bandwagon stuff.”
