STOCKHOLM (CelebrityAccess) — A court in Stockholm has ruled that American rapper A$AP Rocky is free to leave the country as he awaits the outcome of an assault trial, ending his month-long detention in the Scandanavian nation, according to CNN.
The 30-year-old artist — whose real name is Rakim Mayers — has been in custody in Sweden since July 3, when a video appeared to show Mayers and several associates, beating a man on a public street in Stockholm.
Following his release, Rocky thanked his fans and supporters in a message posted to his social media.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of my fans, friends and anyone across the globe who supported me during these last few weeks,” he said.
“This has been a very difficult and humbling experience,” he added.
In legal proceedings in the case, Rocky pleaded not guilty, suggesting that he, and two associates, Bladimir Corniel, and David Rispers, had acted in self defense.
However, prosecutor Daniel Suneson argued that there was no merit to the claims of self-defense.
“In a putative self-defence situation, the violence must still be proportionate. Here we have three people delivering kicks and punches to a person lying down,” Suneson told the court during the hearing, according to CNN.
Rocky’s detention, which came in the middle of a European tour, forced him to cancel a slew of dates.
“He has missed a few shows and if he is continued to be incarcerated we are going to have to cancel the tour, which will result in multi-millions of dollars in losses,” Rocky’s manager John Ehmann told the Hollywood Reporter in early July.
