A$AP Rocky, the US rapper, has been found not guilty of firing a gun at Terell Ephron, his former friend.
The 36-year-old rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, was alleged to have fired a handgun at Ephron on the streets near a Hollywood hotel in 2021, causing minor injuries.
Ephron claimed that the rapper shot at him during an argument on November 6, 2021, grazing his knuckles with one of the shots.
However, Mayers denied the charges, arguing that the weapon was a prop gun and that Ephron was seeking financial gain.
The two had known each other since high school in New York and were part of the A$AP Mob hip-hop collective.
On Tuesday, a jury in Los Angeles delivered a not-guilty verdict on two felony assault charges, which carried a maximum sentence of 24 years in prison.
As the verdict was read, the courtroom erupted in screams and clapping. Rocky rushed to hug his family, including his partner Rihanna and their two sons, RZA and Riot. He also hugged his lawyers and appeared to have tears in his eyes.
“First of all, we want to thank God,” he said outside the Los Angeles superior court. “We really want to thank the jury for making the right decision. We’re blessed to be here right now, to be a free man talking to y’all.”
Rihanna had repeatedly been present in court during the trial and brought their two sons to the verdict reading.
Rihanna and Rocky made their relationship public in December 2020 after being longtime friends.
In May 2022, the celebrity couple welcomed their first child.
Riot Rose, the couple’s second child, was born on August 3, 2023.
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