- A$AP Rocky, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, allegedly drew a handgun and fired twice at his former friend after an argument
Rapper A$AP Rocky has been charged with assault for the November 2021 shooting of a former friend in Hollywood.
The rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, faces two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm with allegations of personally using a firearm, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón’s office said in a press release.
Mayers, 33, is scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday.
“Discharging a gun in a public place is a serious offense that could have ended with tragic consequences not only for the person targeted but also for innocent bystanders visiting Hollywood,” Gascón’s office said in the release.
“My office conducted a thorough review of the evidence in this case and determined that the addition of a special firearm allegation was warranted,” the release continued.
The shooting took place on November 6, 2021, after an argument in Hollywood.
A$AP Rocky faces two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm with allegations of personally using a firearm. (Jacopo M. Raule/Getty Images for Gucci)
Rocky allegedly drew a handgun and fired twice at his former friend, who sustained minor injuries. The rapper then fled the scene with two other people.
He was arrested earlier this year at the Los Angeles International Airport after vacationing in Barbados with singer Rihanna. The two stars have a child together.
The case remains under active investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department.
A$AP Rocky was arrested after stepping off a plane with Rihanna at LAX. (Raymond Hall/GC Images)
In July 2019, Mayers was arrested in Sweden, charged, and found guilty of assault along with two of his bodyguards. On June 30, the rapper and his security team allegedly assaulted a man named Mustafa Jafari in the streets of Stockholm by punching, kicking, and cutting until he received multiple lacerations and a fractured rib.
Mayers and his team argued during the trial they were acting in self-defense, but the court disagreed and gave them conditional sentences, meaning they could avoid jail time and return to the country as long as they didn’t commit a similar offense.
Though not formally married, Rocky pretty much declared his love for Rihanna in a 2021. At the beginning of 2022, they also revealed that they were expecting their first child together. Later on that spring, the couple welcomed their first son.