A$AP Rocky He is home for the holidays, but was ordered to return to court in January.
On Monday (November 20), a judge in Los Angeles decided there was enough evidence to support two counts of assault with a firearm, according to Business Insider. The charges stem from an incident on November 6, 2021, between Rocky and his former friend, Terrell Ephron – so called A$ AP Relli. Rocky is accused of firing shots at Relli during a disagreement.
Officers arrested A$AP Rocky in April 2022 in connection with the case. Police arrested him at Los Angeles International Airport after he landed from a trip to Barbados with girlfriend Rihanna. At the time, they reportedly raided the couple’s LA home for evidence. Rocky finally paid the $550,000 bond and has been out awaiting the next steps. Last November, he was charged.
On Thursday, Judge ML Villar set his date for January 8.
What A$AP Relli Confirmed About Incident With Rocky
Relli recently took the stand at a preliminary hearing and testified that she was childhood friends with Rocky. However, their relationship grew over the years, which Relli blamed on Rocky being “on top” after he found solo success, according to PEOPLE.
Then in October 2021, a mutual friend died, and Rocky reportedly promised to pay for the funeral expenses. His lawyer, Joe Tacopina, has said that Rocky paid in full, but apparently Relli did not believe the rapper. Relli cut off the relationship after he said he heard Rocky bad mouth him on the phone to another friend.
Then, Relli ran into Rocky and two other friends on Hollywood Boulevard on November 6. Prosecutors have shown photos in court that show A$AP Rocky walking towards Relli before he moved – a moment that Relli testified about.
“He grabbed me by the collar. He was shaking me. I tried to push him off, take his hands off,” Relli said. “That’s the time [Rocky] he pulled a gun from his chest. It was a standard clip and black semi-automatic gun. “
Here are the surveillance videos of the alleged shooting by A$AP Rocky. The judge agreed today that they don’t show a real shooting but you can hear gunshots.
I’m going through a lot of video footage right now that I’ll be sharing tonight/tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/OaWZQXccdA
– Meghann Cuniff (@meghancuniff) November 21, 2023
Relli said that A$AP Rocky pointed the firearm at his stomach, chest and head while threatening to kill him at that time. He says the superstar rapper fired two shots at him from about 16 feet away.
More surveillance photos show who prosecutors have identified as Rocky holding what appears to be a weapon. While the video would show two guns, according to the judge’s ruling, Rocky cannot be seen on camera firing any weapon.
Additional evidence includes two 9mm shell casings that Relli recovered from the scene and turned over to police. He did not report the incident to the local police until November 9. The envelopes also bore no fingerprints, and a police search of Rocky’s home yielded no matching weapons.
$AP Rocky’s attorney says evidence against Relli will be released
Meanwhile, Rocky’s lawyer seems confident that additional evidence will vindicate his client. He claims that the shooting never happened and that the case is a ploy to seize money. For context, Relli is also suing Rocky in civil court for about $25,000 and additional coins for expenses such as medical.
“There is some evidence that it is going to be inevitable. The witness is not going to be able to withstand cross-examination in front of the jury,” Tacopina said Monday.
See clips of the hearing here.
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