21 Savage and his legal team believe his 2019 traffic stop was unlawful. TMZ obtained a new court filing where Savage’s team is requesting that evidence collected during the stop be deemed impermissible to prosecutors seeking to have him deported.
The Atlanta based artist, real name She’yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, is originally from the United Kingdom. He has lived in the U.S. since the age of 7 after obtaining a temporary visa that expired in 2005. Three years ago, while in Atlanta, the “No Heart” emcee was stopped by police pursuing a warrant.
Officers claimed he threw out a bottle of codeine and his car keys after being pulled over. A weapon was also located inside the vehicle. As a result of the findings, Savage was charged with possession of a weapon and a controlled substance. In the newly filed motion, his team argues “there was no illegality for the weapon to be in the car.”
As previously reported by REVOLT, Savage’s team believes the traffic stop was orchestrated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “The warrant appears to have been sought at the behest of ICE, as the warrant was issued in the eve of an Immigration Court hearing in Mr. Joseph’s deportation proceeding,” Charles Kuck, Savage’s immigration lawyer, said in a statement.
For a short period of time, the rapper was detained in DeKalb County. This summer, he opened up about his experience while appearing on “My Expert Opinion.” “I called Meek while I was in jail and told Meek, ‘Bro, I just got locked up.’ He called JAY-Z, and JAY-Z put a lawyer on my case. He played a role in getting me out. He ain’t just doing that s**t for anybody just cause you rap. You gotta be from a certain cloth. I don’t feel like he’s just doing that for anybody. I ain’t Roc Nation or none of that s**t.” Check out the full interview below.