Rod Wave, the rapper and singer born Rodarius Marcell Green, was arrested in Manatee County, Florida, confirmed by the St. Petersburg Police Department. He faced charges related to possession of ammunition or a weapon.
Authorities suspected his involvement in a gang-related shooting in Florida that injured four individuals on March 31.
According to a statement from the Petersburg police, gunfire erupted during a verbal altercation among a group of men.
The victims, three men in their 20s and a 17-year-old woman, sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Following his arrest, Rod was transported to Manatee County Jail, where authorities identified him as a convicted felon.
However, his attorneys have publicly disputed this claim on social media, denying Rod’s status as a convicted felon and refuting allegations of ammunition ownership.
“Rod was arrested and detained with absolutely no evidence of wrongdoing,” attorneys Bradford Cohen and Mark Rankin wrote on Instagram.
“The police claimed he was a felon in possession of ammunition.
Not only was he not in possession of ammunition, a basic check of public records would have easily demonstrated to the police that he was not a convicted felon. The prosecutor and the judge immediately agreed that the evidence did not support the charge and set him free the same day.”
In 2022, Rod faced unrelated charges of domestic battery by strangulation, allegedly involving his ex-girlfriend. His attorney, Cohen, characterized the incident as a misunderstanding between the couple, leading to Rod’s arrest.
Despite legal issues, Rod achieved success in his music career, releasing his second Billboard 200-topping album, “Beautiful Mind,” the same year.
In 2023, he followed up with “Nostalgia,” featuring a collaboration with 21 Savage on the track “Turks & Caicos,” which held the No. 1 spot for two weeks.
