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American rapper Wiz Khalifa was sentenced by a Romanian court on Thursday to nine months in prison for drug possession, more than a year after he took part in a music festival in the Eastern European country.
Khalifa was stopped by Romanian police in July 2024 after allegedly smoking marijuana on stage at Beach, Please! Festival in Costinesti, a coastal resort in the district of Constanta. Prosecutors said the rapper, whose real name is Cameron Jibril Thomaz, was found to be in possession of more than 18 grams of cannabis and that he consumed some on stage.
The Constanta Court of Appeal handed down the verdict after Khalifa was found guilty of “illegal possession of dangerous drugs for personal use,” Romania’s national news agency Agerpres reported. The decision is final.
The decision came after a lower court in Constanta County in April sentenced Khalifa to a criminal fine of 3,600 lei (approximately $1,140 Canadian) for “illegal possession of dangerous drugs,” but prosecutors appealed the court’s decision and demanded a harsher sentence.
Romania has some of the toughest drug laws in Europe. Possession of cannabis for personal use is criminalized and can result in a prison sentence of three months to two years or a fine.
It is unclear whether Romanian authorities will file an extradition request because Khalifa is a U.S. citizen and does not reside in Romania.
The 38-year-old Pittsburgh rapper rose to fame with his breakthrough mixtape. Kush + orange juice. Last summer, on stage in Romania, the popular rapper smoked a large hand-rolled cigarette while performing his hit song. Young, wild and free.
