Yasiin Bey, the rapper formerly known as Mos Def, has been living in Cape Town, South Africa, since 2013, but has been unable to leave the country since being arrested for false travel documents earlier this year. Now, following an apology to the South African government, the charges against Bey have been withdrawn.
The initial arrest happened when Bey tried to leave the country with a "world passport" — a document issued by the World Service Authority non-profit organization, which is not recognized by the home affairs department as a legitimate document.
That same government department has now issued a statement about Bey, which reads [via Reuters]: "[He] has unreservedly apologized to the Government of South Africa. The department is satisfied with the apology [and] will withdraw the charges against him."
Despite the charges being dropped, should Bey leave the country he will be declared "an undesirable person" and not granted re-entry.
Bey previously discussed the ordeal in a message that was released through Kanye West's website back in January.
Although he was unable to travel in the last year, Bey still managed to hop on some high-profile Canadian collaborations, including "Arcade" with BADBADNOTGOOD and "R.E.D." with A Tribe Called Red, Narcy and Black Bear. Relive the video for the latter below.
Enjoy his work while you can; Bey also confirmed last month that he would be retiring from music this year.
The initial arrest happened when Bey tried to leave the country with a "world passport" — a document issued by the World Service Authority non-profit organization, which is not recognized by the home affairs department as a legitimate document.
That same government department has now issued a statement about Bey, which reads [via Reuters]: "[He] has unreservedly apologized to the Government of South Africa. The department is satisfied with the apology [and] will withdraw the charges against him."
Despite the charges being dropped, should Bey leave the country he will be declared "an undesirable person" and not granted re-entry.
Bey previously discussed the ordeal in a message that was released through Kanye West's website back in January.
Although he was unable to travel in the last year, Bey still managed to hop on some high-profile Canadian collaborations, including "Arcade" with BADBADNOTGOOD and "R.E.D." with A Tribe Called Red, Narcy and Black Bear. Relive the video for the latter below.
Enjoy his work while you can; Bey also confirmed last month that he would be retiring from music this year.
