MIAMI BEACH — Rapper Rick Ross has been charged with battery in Miami Beach after a woman who said she had been living with the musician told police that he assaulted her during an argument, according to police records and court documents.
Ross, whose legal name is William Roberts II, surrendered to Miami Beach police on Thursday, following a complaint made by the woman. Court records show that he faces a felony charge of battery by strangulation and a separate misdemeanour battery charge.
The allegations, according to TMZ, have not been proven in court, and Ross has denied wrongdoing through his lawyer.
According to the arrest report, the woman told detectives that she was living with Ross on August 28 when he accused her of being unfaithful. She alleged that he struck her several times, choked her using the collar of her shirt and slammed her against a wall.
The woman told investigators that she eventually managed to leave the property. She later returned to collect her belongings after Ross had left, according to the police account.
Ross was subsequently released from custody on a $5,000 cash bond, with an arraignment scheduled for October 22, according to court records.
Ross’s lawyer denies allegations
Ross’s attorney, Steve Sadow, rejected the allegations and argued that the circumstances surrounding the complaint raise questions about the accusation.
In a statement issued on Ross’s behalf, Sadow said:
“The ex did not even file a police report until a month after the claimed incident allegedly took place. Mr. Roberts is innocent and has pled not guilty to the charges. He respectfully requests that his friends, fans and the general public not prejudge the situation and allow the judicial process to run its course.”
The defence position is that Ross has been wrongfully accused by a former girlfriend and that her motivations for making the allegations remain unclear.
The case will now proceed through the criminal justice system, where prosecutors will have to establish the allegations against Ross beyond the applicable legal standard.
Previous criminal case
The latest charges are not Ross’s first encounter with the criminal justice system.
In 2017, he pleaded no contest to an aggravated-assault charge stemming from allegations that he forced a man into a guesthouse at his suburban Atlanta property in 2015 and assaulted him with a handgun.
Under Georgia’s first-offender programme, however, the court subsequently issued an order exonerating Ross of guilt on the felony count.
Ross has remained a prominent figure in American hip-hop and has strong ties to South Florida. He rose to national prominence in 2006 with his debut single, “Hustlin’,” and subsequently built a commercially successful career as a rapper, entrepreneur and record executive.
The Miami Beach case remains unresolved. Ross is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
