US rapper Nicki Minaj freed after Netherlands arrest
The Hague, Netherlands — U.S. 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 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 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 the payment of 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. A common misconception outside the Netherlands is that marijuana is legal in the country, home to world-famous coffee shops (which …