Rapper Boosie Badazz is behind bars as a result of police using Instagram to monitor suspected criminal activity, according to newly unsealed federal court records.
The Louisiana rapper — born Torrence Hatch Jr. — was taken into custody by federal authorities on Wednesday (June 14) at a courthouse in San Diego, moments after a local gun case against him was dismissed by San Diego County prosecutors.
A federal judge unsealed the criminal complaint on Friday, revealing the feds arrested Boosie on a gun charge — similar to the local count that was dropped, according to Billboard.
Related Story: Feds Arrest Boosie Badazz Outside California Courtroom – Rapper Apologizes to His Kids
The documents obtained by the outlet show Boosie was originally arrested on May 6, after local police deemed him an associate of a “known” gang member.
A San Diego police detective was “conducting intelligence gathering,” by scrolling through the Instagram account of a “known Neighborhood Crip,” when the detective noticed footage of a man “filming a music video in what appeared to be a backyard of a residence.”
The complaint says Boosie was tagged in the video, revealing his identity to the detective. The rapper is alleged to have had a gun tucked into the waistband of his pants.
TMZ obtained screen shots of the video, which showed a man who looked similar to Boosie standing in the yard of a home. The man was wearing a white shirt and red pants with a gun tucked in the back of his sagging pants.
According to the criminal complaint, the detective switched over to Boosie’s IG account and noticed he was streaming a live Instagram Story at a location allegedly “associated with the Neighborhood Crip criminal street gang.”
Prosecutors said the San Diego Police Department then dispatched a helicopter and officers on the ground to locate the rapper.
According to the complaint, Boosie was spotted getting into a black SUV. Police tracked the vehicle and pulled it over after the driver allegedly went through a red light.
The complaint says officers asked about weapons and Boosie said a security guard was armed. During a search of the vehicle, police found two loaded guns, including the “same weapon pictured in Hatch’s rear waistband” in the Instagram video, according to the complaint.
Boosie was arrested on a weapons charge, but the local case was later dismissed
It’s unclear why the feds decided to essentially pick up the case and charge the rapper with violating federal laws that prohibit a previously convicted felon from possessing a firearm.
The rapper had prior felony convictions in his home state of Louisiana on drug charges.
He is being held without bail in San Diego, at least until his detention hearing on June 19.
The rapper’s lawyer criticized federal officials for their actions.
“The circumstances of Mr. Hatch’s arrest have been widely known since early May. Nevertheless, the federal government waited until Mr. Hatch was set to resolve his state case before filing identical federal charges,” attorney Meghan A. Blanco said.
“And then, after they took him into custody, they announced that they were unprepared to proceed with his detention hearing,” Blanco added. “Because the government was ill-prepared, Mr. Hatch was forced to cancel a number of shows over this historic Juneteenth weekend.”
