Lil Tjay saw his birthday celebrations spoiled earlier this week after he was arrested over an outstanding warrant.
According to Complex, the Bronx rapper (real name Tione Merritt) was detained at Miami-Opa Locka airport on Tuesday (April 30), the same day he turned 23.
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The warrant appears to relate to a missed court date from September 2021. Tjay has since been released from police custody on a $500 bond — but not without his mugshot surfacing online.
The “Calling My Phone” hitmaker quickly responded to reports of his arrest, posting a picture on Instagram of him boarding a private jet.
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“I AINT HEAR NUN THE BLOGS SAID CAUSE WHERE IM AT IT AINT NO SERVICE. 500 ON MY BDAY SHI** BOUT NUN I DESERVE IT,” he wrote in the caption.
He also said in a video posted to his Instagram Story: “They violated on my birthday.”
Lil Tjay previously found himself in trouble with the law last year when he was booked for reckless endangerment after livestreaming himself driving.
The arrest was filmed by Tjay on Instagram Live, with the footage showing him telling officers: “Nah. Do not touch me, bro. What am I under arrest for?”
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One of the cops then told the Bronx native to turn around, but he refused: “No, n-gga. No, bro. Hell no. What’s in the car? I don’t know what’s in the car. Don’t touch me. There’s no firearm in the car.”
He was then restrained by multiple officers, handcuffed and taken away.
Tjay had earlier been forced to turn himself in on a gun charge that was thought to be related to his 2022 shooting.
According to his lawyer: “This arrest is not a new gun charge. He had to turn himself in for the case where he was a victim where he was shot multiple times. The allegation is that there were guns in the car.”
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Tjay was shot several times in New Jersey in June 2022 and was subsequently rushed to hospital where he underwent emergency surgery.
After recovering, the rapper let fans know he was touched by their support.
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“Hey what’s going on y’all?” he said in a video while wearing a neck brace. “I’m just checking in with y’all. I just wanna say, thanks for the love, thanks for the support. I’ve been looking at the DM’s, seeing the comments and everything else and I feel love.”
