U.S. presidential envoy sent to Sweden for rapper’s trial
HELSINKI — American rapper A$AP Rocky pleaded not guilty to assault as his trial in Sweden opened Tuesday, a month after a street fight that landed him in jail and became a topic of U.S.-Swedish diplomacy.
Rocky, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, is accused with two others of beating a 19-year-old man in Stockholm on June 30. Prosecutors played video footage in court that showed Mayers throwing a young man to the ground.
Wearing sweatpants and a green T-shirt in court, Mayers, 30, pleaded not guilty to an assault charge that carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison. He says he acted in self-defense.
The Grammy-nominated artist’s ongoing detention in Sweden this month prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to personally intervene on his behalf. Mayers nevertheless remained behind bars, angering Trump.
Swedish news agency TT said Trump sent the U.S. special presidential envoy for hostage affairs to Stockholm to monitor the court proceedings and to show support for Mayers.
The special envoy, Ambassador Robert O’Brien, was seen at Stockholm District Court in the morning.
A biographical statement on the State Department’s website says O’Brien “leads the U.S. government’s diplomatic efforts on overseas hostage-related matters.”
“He works closely with the families of American hostages and advises the senior leadership of the U.S. Government on hostage issues,” the website states.
It wasn’t immediately clear why Trump dispatched a diplomat charged with advocating for hostages; fellow rapper RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan told The Associated Press on Friday he was concerned about A$AP Rocky’s situation and “disappointed that a judge cannot discern that this is not a man you hold hostage.”
Ruth Newman, spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy
in Stockholm, told TT that O’Brien was in Sweden “to look after the well-being of American citizens, which is always our top priority.”
A$AP Rocky’s mother, Renee Black, also attended the proceedings. She said beforehand she was convinced her son is not guilty,
“This is a nightmare,” Black was quoted by Swedish media as saying.
Prosecutors and defense lawyers presented competing narratives on the trial’s opening day of what happened the night of the fight.
Prosecutors said 19-yearold Mustafa Jafari and a friend got into an argument with Mayers and one of his bodyguards near a fast-food restaurant where the rapper’s entourage had eaten.