21 Savage Reps Say ICE Is Spreading False Information About Rapper
21 Savage’s legal team has issued a statement today (Feb. 5) clearing up what they feel is false information about the rapper's immigration status in the U.S.
In the statement, 21's reps say he moved to the U.S. when he was seven years old. That's something that directly contradicts an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) official's report that 21 had actually moved to the U.S. in 2005. According to his lawyers, 21 had lived in the U.S. up until he moved to U.K. for a month and ultimately returned to the U.S. Besides that, he's been in the U.S. for the entire time after his one-month stay in the U.K.
The statement also points toward speculation that it was 21 Savage's revised "A Lot" lyrics that made him an ICE target.
“Many have speculated as to possible ulterior motives for his arrest and detention, including that he released music five days prior to his arrest by ICE, which included new lyrics condemning the behavior of immigration officials for their detention of children at the border,” reads the statement from 21’s legal team.
21’s arrest happened just days after performing "A Lot" on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last month, in which he condemned immigration officials' behavior of separating children from their mothers at the border. "Been through some things so I can't imagine my kids stuck at the border/Flint still need water/People was innocent, couldn't get lawyers,” he rapped during his set.
As we previously reported, Charles H. Kuck, who works as one of the rapper's attorneys, maintained that there has been a misunderstanding with Savage’s visa status. He said that the rapper, whose real name is She’yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, applied for a U visa in 2017 and his application is still under review. But he claims that ICE knew about 21's pending visa status but didn’t take any action until the arrest this past weekend in Atlanta.
In conclusion, the legal team believe that 21 is being unreasonably detained and are working hard to get him out of custody.
"There continues to be no legal reason to detain Mr. Abraham-Joseph for a civil law violation that occurred when he was a minor, especially when people in his exact situation are routinely released by ICE," they stated. "We are unaware of why ICE apparently targeted Mr. Abraham-Joseph, but we will do everything possible to legally seek his release and pursue his available relief in immigration court."
You can read 21 Savage's legal team's entire statement at TMZ.com.
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