After he pleaded not guilty to assault charges earlier in the week (July 30), A$AP Rocky testified that he tried to avoid an altercation with two men in Stockholm, Sweden, though one of the men started the fight with him and his bodyguards.
As the Associated Press reports, the New York MC born Rakim Mayers told Stockholm District Court today that 19-year-old Mustafa Jafari and his friend refused to leave the entourage alone despite repeated requests.
Mayers told the court that Jafari got into an argument with one of Mayers' bodyguards near a restaurant in Stockholm.
"After a while, my security guard started pushing him away, begging him to leave," said Mayers, adding that his crew wanted to "de-escalate" the situation. "Me and my crew told them that, 'Listen, don't go where we are going. Go the other way, we don't want any trouble."
Mayers told the court that Jafari refused to leave, adding that he "assumed that these guys were under the influence of some kind of drug."
Prosecutors allege that Mayers and his crew assaulted Jafari by kicking and beating him, saying he was hit with parts of or a whole glass bottle. Jafari had told police earlier that he was angry after his headphones were broken during the argument with the bodyguard.
"When [the bodyguard] pushed me, I was both offended and surprised," Jafari testified today. "I followed them and said I was going to call the police... since he had broken my headphones."
AP reports that despite being asked a number of times, Jafari did not make clear why he wanted to approach Mayers and his entourage in the first place. He told the court his memory of the night's events was confused because of blows to the head allegedly received during the brawl.
Since Mayers was taken into custody on July 3, the likes of Kanye West, Justin Bieber and even Donald Trump have pleaded with Swedish prosecutors to free the rapper.
While Trump has offered to personally vouch for the rapper's bail, the bail system does not exist in Sweden. The President has since sent Robert O. Brien, the U.S. special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, to monitor the trial.
If convicted, Mayers faces up to two years in prison.
As the Associated Press reports, the New York MC born Rakim Mayers told Stockholm District Court today that 19-year-old Mustafa Jafari and his friend refused to leave the entourage alone despite repeated requests.
Mayers told the court that Jafari got into an argument with one of Mayers' bodyguards near a restaurant in Stockholm.
"After a while, my security guard started pushing him away, begging him to leave," said Mayers, adding that his crew wanted to "de-escalate" the situation. "Me and my crew told them that, 'Listen, don't go where we are going. Go the other way, we don't want any trouble."
Mayers told the court that Jafari refused to leave, adding that he "assumed that these guys were under the influence of some kind of drug."
Prosecutors allege that Mayers and his crew assaulted Jafari by kicking and beating him, saying he was hit with parts of or a whole glass bottle. Jafari had told police earlier that he was angry after his headphones were broken during the argument with the bodyguard.
"When [the bodyguard] pushed me, I was both offended and surprised," Jafari testified today. "I followed them and said I was going to call the police... since he had broken my headphones."
AP reports that despite being asked a number of times, Jafari did not make clear why he wanted to approach Mayers and his entourage in the first place. He told the court his memory of the night's events was confused because of blows to the head allegedly received during the brawl.
Since Mayers was taken into custody on July 3, the likes of Kanye West, Justin Bieber and even Donald Trump have pleaded with Swedish prosecutors to free the rapper.
While Trump has offered to personally vouch for the rapper's bail, the bail system does not exist in Sweden. The President has since sent Robert O. Brien, the U.S. special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, to monitor the trial.
If convicted, Mayers faces up to two years in prison.
