Rapper A$AP Rocky says street fight in Sweden was self defence

US rapper A$AP Rocky pleaded not guilty to ­assault at his trial in Sweden yesterday over a street brawl.

Some of the injuries sustained by Mustafa Jafari, the alleged victim involved in a fight with rapper A$AP Rocky and his entourage. Picture: AP

US rapper A$AP Rocky pleaded not guilty to ­assault at his trial in Sweden yesterday over a street brawl, saying he acted in self-defence in a case that has stirred diplomatic tensions and outraged fans.

The 30-year-old rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, was arrested on July 3 with three others following the fight in Stockholm on June 30. One of them, the rapper’s bodyguard, was later released.

Prosecutor Daniel Suneson told the court yesterday that he believed A$AP Rocky and the two other accused had assaulted a 19-year old man together.

Mr Suneson said the accused had punched, kicked and hit the plaintiff with a bottle. He then went on to show the court parts from the 550 pages of the preliminary investigation.

The prosecution showed several videos where the rapper can be seen throwing a young man to the ground and then aiming several punches at him while he is down.

The court was also shown ­videos published to the rapper’s Instagram account in which the young man can be seen arguing with the musician over a pair of headphones. The artist appears to repeatedly ask the man and his friend to stop following him and his entourage. One of the young men can also be seen hitting the artist’s bodyguard.

Donald Trump has repeatedly tried to intervene in the case, personally calling Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven to discuss the matter.

In a subsequent tweet, the US President said he vouched for the rapper and offered to pay his bail last week, even though ­Sweden’s justice system has no provisions for bail.

The district court deemed A$AP Rocky a flight risk and ­ordered his continued detention.

AFP