Nicki Minaj was fined and released after being arrested by police at Amsterdam Schiphol airport for discovering drugs in her luggage.
Nicki Minaj arrested
On the afternoon of May 25 (local time), the Dutch national police agency Koninklijke Marechaussee announced on X about the arrest on suspicion of transporting illegal substances.
“We have just released a 41-year-old American woman. We arrested her this afternoon at Schiphol on suspicion of exporting non-narcotic drugs. After consultation with the prosecutor’s office, the suspect was fined and was able to continue her journey,” the police wrote.
Dutch police did not name the suspect or the amount of the fine, but everyone knew the “41-year-old American woman” was famous rapper Nicki Minaj because she live-streamed the entire incident on Instagram Live.
Nicki Minaj was arrested by Dutch police after marijuana was found in her luggage. Photo: FilmMagic.
During the broadcast, Minaj explained police told her that marijuana was found in her bag and it had to be weighed. At that time, she was traveling from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Manchester (England) as part of her Pink Friday 2 world tour .
Although she vehemently denied transporting banned substances, the female rapper was still escorted to the police station by the police. The owner of the hit Anaconda expressed frustration because he was put in a police truck and “entered an area without a lawyer present.” She also accused someone working for airport security of asking her to give a statement without a lawyer present after finding unauthorized rolls of paper in her bag.
Before her arrest, Minaj posted a series of posts on X about her luggage being searched at the airport. She criticized the authorities for taking her luggage without her consent. The 8X beauty even put forward a conspiracy theory that someone had put illegal substances in her luggage to disrupt her tour.
“They were paid a lot of money to try to sabotage my tour because a lot of people were going crazy because it was such a success and they couldn’t eat me. They were caught stealing money from my trip/jet,” she alleged.
In another post, she explained that she recently fired her personal management team for charging an extra $30,000-$50,000 for her private flights, thereby pocketing the extra money.
Currently, the female rapper’s representative has not made an official statement about the incident.
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Fans are disappointed
The short-term arrest led to the postponement of the show on the evening of May 25 in the UK. The announcement from the representative of Co-op Live Arena, where the concert was held, did not reveal when Minaj would return to perform.
Minaj was scheduled to take the stage at 6:30 p.m. on May 25, but was pushed back to 7 p.m. before being rescheduled. Video from the scene showed supporters lining up hours before the performance, chanting “Free Nicki Minaj” and hoping the star would make it to the show. Nearly every seat in the arena was filled. However, they were ultimately disappointed when the organizers made the final announcement. Many people protested the decision.
Footage recorded inside Co-op Live Arena (Manchester), the UK’s largest indoor arena with a capacity of 23,500, shows thousands of fans patiently waiting for their idol to arrive. When the announcement was made, there were many boos and disappointments.
A fan named Alesha shared with Daily Mail that she felt heartbroken when the long-awaited show was postponed.
“Tickets are not cheap. We spent a lot of money to be there tonight, not to mention the travel expenses and outfits we invested in for the trip. It’s a pity that the organizers didn’t let us know in advance that the show was postponed,” she said.
Meanwhile, Kian Young (23 years old, from Scunthorpe, England) said he was confused as to why the Co-op Arena did not speak to fans. He also wondered why they did not cancel the event immediately after news of Minaj’s arrest, instead of making people wait for nothing. Young added that his wife cried out of frustration.
Others blamed the singer for the chaos. Olivia Gibson, from Newcastle, England, even declared herself a “former fan”.
“I was horrified. But in a way, I wasn’t shocked. It’s not Co-op Live’s fault. It’s Nicki Minaj’s fault. She just let all her fans down,” the 21-year-old criticized.
Fans leave the arena in disappointment after organizers announced the postponement of Nicki Minaj’s show. Photo: Reuters.
After arriving in Manchester, the rapper thanked her fans for their words of encouragement and apologized for not being able to perform on time.
“Please accept my deepest and most sincere apologies. They certainly knew exactly how to hurt me today but this too shall pass. They’ve done this over and over again and I’ve tried so hard not to discuss it because you guys deserve good things. I hate to involve you in anything that is not for entertainment purposes,” the music star emphasized.
She promised to make it up to her fans with another show, along with an extra bonus. Minaj said the exact date has not been set, but she and her team are discussing options for June and July.
At the end of the letter, rapper Bang Bang confirmed that the second show in Manchester on May 30 will still take place on schedule.
Nicki Minaj (born 1982), real name Onika Tanya Mara, is from Trinidad and Tobago. She is famous for her many roles as a rapper, singer/songwriter, actress and model. She is one of the most successful female rappers in the world today. She is loved for many hits such as Starships, Super Bass, Anaconda, Bang Bang …
