Trump ‘to vouch for A$AP Rocky’s bail’ despite Sweden having no bail system
Grammy-nominated US rapper has been detained since July 3 after alleged fight in Stockholm
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has offered to guarantee A$AP Rocky’s bail to release the US rapper from custody in Sweden, despite the Scandinavian country not having a bail system.
The hip-hop star, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, has been detained in Sweden since July 3 as police investigate his alleged involvement in a street fight.
The brawl allegedly took place before the rapper’s performance at Smash festival in Stockholm, with footage of the incident spreading across social media.
Trump, who intervened in the case after a plea from Kanye West, today announced he had phoned Swedish leader Stefan Löfven in a bid to secure the rapper’s release.
The US president tweeted: “Just had a very good call with @SwedishPM Stefan Löfven who assured me that American citizen A$AP Rocky will be treated fairly.
“Likewise, I assured him that A$AP was not a flight risk and offered to personally vouch for his bail, or an alternative....
“....Our teams will be talking further, and we agreed to speak again in the next 48 hours!”
Sweden, however, does not have a bail system, unlike the US.
“There have been a lot of misunderstandings about how the justice system works in Sweden,” Dennis Martinsson, a senior law lecturer at Stockholm University, told Time.
“I assume that people think we have a bail system and he was denied bail. We don’t have that system, so the only option is detention.”
Löfven had earlier said that he was aware Trump “has a personal interest in the case” but insisted the rapper would not receive special treatment.
He added: “I will explain that the Swedish judicial system is independent. In Sweden, everyone is equal before the law, and this includes visitors from other countries.”
High-profile musicians including Sean “Diddy” Combs, Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj and Post Malone have defended A$AP Rocky since his arrest, with some threatening to boycott future concerts in Sweden.
More than 600,000 people have signed a #JusticeforRocky petition calling for the release of the Grammy-nominated rapper, alleging that he is being kept at a prison with “horrific” conditions.
“To keep Rocky and his colleagues in jail pending the lengthy trial proceedings is a punishment before the fact, with no due process,” it states.
Additional reporting by agencies
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