21 Savage Confirms He’s A UK Citizen

(CelebrityAccess) — Rapper 21 Savage conceded that he is a citizen of the United Kingdom, but his legal team has claimed that he has been improperly detained by ICE.

21 Savage was arrested by federal agents with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who claimed that he is a citizen of the United Kingdom who has stayed past the duration of his visa.

ICE spokesman Brian Cox told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that 21 Savage, whose real name is Shayaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, is an “unlawfully present United Kingdom national” who entered the United States in 2005 on a visa which expired in 2006.

Savage’s attorney Charles H. Kuck released a statement to Buzzfeed, which indicated Savage is being held without bond.

“The Department of Homeland Security has known his address and his history since his filing for the U Visa in 2017, yet they took no action against him until this past weekend,” Kuck said in the statement.

“As a minor,” Kuck added “[Savage]’s family overstayed their work visas, and he, like almost two million other children, was left without legal status through no fault of his own. This is a civil law violation, and the continued detention of Mr. Abraham-Joseph serves no other purpose than to unnecessarily punish him and try to intimidate him into giving up his right to fight to remain in the United States.”

Kuck went on to allege that his client never concealed his immigration status from authorities and noted that he has a visa request pending.

“Mr. Abraham-Joseph has three U.S. Citizen children, a lawful permanent resident mother and four siblings that are either US Citizens or lawful permanent residents. He has exceptionally strong ties in the United States, having lived here since he was in the first grade. Because of his length of residence in the United States and his immediate relatives, Mr. Abraham-Joseph is eligible to seek Cancellation of Removal from an Immigration Judge,” Kuck said in the statement.

“Mr. Abraham-Joseph was placed into deportation proceedings AFTER his arrest, he was not in deportation proceedings prior to this detention by ICE. DHS has known his address since the filing of a U visa application in 2017. He has never hidden from DHS or any of its agencies. Mr. Abraham-Joseph is not subject to mandatory detention under federal law and is eligible for bond. By statute, bond should be granted by ICE when there is no flight risk or a danger to the community… We are unaware of why ICE apparently targeted Mr. Abraham-Joseph, but we will do everything possible to legally seek his release and pursue his available relief in immigration court,” he added.