Florida rapper Kodak Black, one of the celebrities whom then-US President Donald Trump pardoned just before leaving office last year, was among three people who were shot and injured outside a nightclub near Los Angeles.
The shooting occurred early Saturday morning outside The Nice Guy lounge in West Hollywood, which was reportedly hosting a star-studded afterparty following a nearby Justin Bieber concert. Black, 24, and the two other victims were expected to recover after being taken to a local hospital, police told NBC News.
Multiple shots were fired as a scuffle broke out shortly after the rapper and his entourage left the nightclub around 2:45 a.m. No arrests have been made in the case, and a fourth person was injured without being shot.
Another media account of the incident, by TMZ, indicated that Black was shot in the leg. Footage posted on social media showed that he was posing for photos just before the fight began. TMZ said the fight started when one of the performer’s friends was attacked by an unknown assailant.
Black, whose real name is Bill Kapri, was sentenced to 46 months in prison on federal weapons crimes in 2020. He admitted to lying on forms for background checks on several gun purchases.
The rapper would still likely have been in prison, rather than partying in West Hollywood on Saturday, had he not been pardoned by Trump in January 2020. Black and another rap star, Lil Wayne, were among 143 people who were pardoned or had their sentences commuted on Trump’s last full day on the job.
A White House statement at the time praised Black for his charity work. “Before his conviction and after reaching success as a recording artist, Kodak Black became deeply involved in numerous philanthropic efforts. In fact, he has committed to supporting a variety of charitable efforts, such as providing educational resources to students and families of fallen law enforcement officers and the underprivileged.”
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