Trump Lashes out at Sweden After Rapper A$AP Rocky Charged

President Donald Trump speaks to the media before departing the White House en route West Virginia in Washington, D.C., on July 24, 2019. (Mary F. Calvert/REUTERS)

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump is lashing out at Sweden after a prosecutor there charged rapper A$AP Rocky with assault over a fight in Stockholm last month.

A$AP Rocky at Pre-Grammy Gala And Salute To Industry Icons in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Feb. 9, 2019. (Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Trump is reacting on Twitter, saying he is “Very disappointed in Prime Minister Stefan Löfven,” whom he personally lobbied, “for being unable to act.”

Trump is calling on Sweden to “Treat Americans fairly!” and “Give A$AP Rocky his FREEDOM,” adding, “We do so much for Sweden but it doesn’t seem to work the other way around.”

He’s also using the popular hashtag “#FreeRocky.”

Rocky, a platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated artist, has been in custody since July 3. The case has drawn the attention of a long list of U.S. celebrities, including Sean “Diddy” Combs, Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian West.

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Trump told reporters at the White House on July 19 the issue was first brought to his attention by his wife, as well as his African-American friends who had personally called him for help to release the rapper—whose real name is Rakim Mayers.

“Actually, the one that knew about A$AP Rocky first was our First Lady. She told me, ‘Can you help A$AP Rocky?’” Trump said before asking Melania if she wanted to make a statement.

Melania said she had been working with the State Department to get the rapper released.

“We hope to get him home soon,” she said.

“I have been called by so many people to help A$AP Rocky,” the president said.

On July 20, Trump said he had spoken with Löfven about A$AP Rocky over the phone. Trump said that Löfven assured him that the rapper will be treated fairly.

“Just had a very good call with Swedish PM Stefan Löfven who assured me that American citizen A$AP Rocky will be treated fairly.

“Likewise, I assured him that A$AP was not a flight risk and offered to personally vouch for his bail, or an alternative.

“Our teams will be talking further, and we agreed to speak again in the next 48 hours!” Trump tweeted early on July 20.

Löfven issued a statement earlier on July 20 saying he would be glad to speak with Trump about A$AP Rocky’s detention but that his government “cannot and will not attempt to influence prosecutors or courts.”

“I understand that President Trump has a personal interest in the case. … He has expressed the desire for a conversation with me, which is certainly positive,” Löfven said.

“I will explain that the Swedish judicial system is independent. In Sweden, everyone is equal before the law, and this includes visitors from other countries.”

NTD Staff contributed to this report.