ANGELA WEISSAFP
US rapper Nicki Minaj was detained at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport on suspicion of possessing soft drugs before being released with a fine, Dutch media reported Saturday.
The singer was due to perform a show in Britain later Saturday and posted images on social media of her being questioned by officials.
Police confirmed to AFP that they had detained a 41-year-old American woman but declined to confirm directly that it was Minaj, as per their usual policy.
"We never confirm the identity of a person in custody but I can confirm we have arrested a 41-year-old woman suspected of trying to export soft drugs to another country," Robert Kapel, a military police spokesman, told AFP.
Kapel later told AFP the suspect had been released after paying a "reasonable" fine.
"There's no reason for us to keep her in custody any longer. We have all the information for our file. Case closed," he told AFP.
The rapper posted on X that authorities told her they had found cannabis in her luggage, which she said belonged to her security personnel.
???? now they said they found weed & that another group of ppl have to come here to weigh the pre-rolls. Keep in mind they took my bags without consent. My security has already advised them those pre-rolls belong to him. Oh yea & the pilot wants me to take my ig post down.
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) May 25, 2024
A common misconception outside the Netherlands is that dope is legal in the country, home to world-famous coffee shops (which sell pot) that are a huge draw for cannabis smokers.
The consumption of small quantities of cannabis is technically illegal but police choose not to enforce the law as part of a "tolerance" policy in place since the 1970s.
Transporting the drugs to another country is illegal.
© Agence France-Presse
