Week after week there is no shortage of Cardi B and Offset news. It seems like every other day we have a new story involving their on-again off-again relationship, their extravagant gifts to one another, or their outspoken political beliefs.
However, over the weekend Offset made headlines for a brief encounter with Beverly Hills police after he passed by a pro-Trump rally.
Offset decided to livestream his interaction with police and the result was a heated exchange that resulted in the arrest of one of Cardi B’s cousins and many wondering why the police stopped the Migos rapper to begin with?
Offset was detained by police after driving past a pro-Trump rally in Beverly Hills.
On Saturday evening, rapper Offset streamed a confrontation with police on Instagram Live while being pulled over, after a passerby reported that a person inside the Migos rapper’s car allegedly pointed a gun through the window at him as they drove past a pro-Trump rally in Beverly Hills.
According to police, they received a license plate and vehicle description that matched that of Offset and attempted to make a traffic stop. That’s when Offset began to livestream the encounter with police.
“Because you’ve got guns out, I’m not finna move my hands from my steering wheel,” Offset can be heard saying in video reported by TMZ, before officers open the door and pull him out of the vehicle. “You can’t just open my door,” he says. “That’s illegal. I’m going to sue to the shit out of y’all.”
Offset’s representatives have released the following statement in response to the incident.
“Artist and Philanthropist Offset was detained by the Beverly Hills Police Department following an attack by aggressive Trump supporters,” the statement reads. “He was released shortly thereafter. Offset thanks his fans for their support and wishes everyone peace and safety during these trying times. He encourages everyone to get out and vote because nothing changes if nothing changes.”
Although the police say a crime was committed, they add that the victim didn’t want to press charges.
“The victim of the crime did not desire to press charges for the pointing of the weapon,” police said in a statement. Police also reassured Offset was not arrested.
The Migos rapper live-streamed the entire encounter on Instagram Live.
As soon as the police made the traffic stop, Offset got his phone and began to livestream the encounter with police. Considering the way police so often handle encounters such as this with Black men, it was a wise decision on his part.
In the video, you can hear officers ask him to exit his car but he refuses becase the officers have their guns pointed at him.
“I’m not going to move my hands from the steering wheel,” he can be heard saying in the video.
In the video, you can also hear Offset argue with officers over what had just happened, as he claims people had “beat his car up with a flag.”
A passenger in Offset’s car was arrested and charged with firearms offenses.
Although police literally dragged Offset out of his own vehicle, officers have reiterated in statements that the rapper was not arrested or charged with any crime. However, a passenger in his car, 20-year-old Marcelo Almanzar (who shares a surname with Offset’s wife, fellow hip hop heavyweight Cardi B) was arrested and charged with carrying a loaded, concealed firearm in a public place, according to the report.
In a tweet, Philip Lewis of the Huffington Post said that person, Marcelo Almanzar, is Cardi B’s cousin. However, as of Sunday afternoon, Marcelo is still in a Beverly Hills jail on a $35,000 bond.
Cardi B showed up to the scene and allegedly had to be restrained after trying to intervene to help her husband.
As the story broke on Saturday, Cardi B rolled up to the scene in her new black Rolls Royce just as Offset was arguing with the cops. When he refused to turn off his car, police reached into his car and physically dragged him out of it.
“That’s my husband! Why are you pointing a gun at him?” the rapper yelled while restrained by a friend, according to The Daily Mail.
Cardi then gets out her phone and shouts, ‘Let me record this.’ As Offset is led away, she yells loudly: ‘No! This is crazy! My husband is not armed. My husband is not armed.”
Much of the commotion took place as a crowd gathered – including several people carrying pro-Trump signs which had to have added to the tense situation.
By Sunday, things appeared to be back to normal for the couple as the pair went shopping in Beverly Hills.
Despite the traumatic incident, both Cardi B and Offset were sharing stories to their Instagram on Sunday as the couple were out shopping in Beverly Hills.
The pair had popped into a Beverly Hills Hermès store, and in an Instagram post joked that they were ‘spoilt’ by the luxury goods on offer.
So what do you think? Did Offset make the right choice to livestream the encounter with police?
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