Lil Tjay Arrested Again, Charged With Reckless Endangerment And Criminal Possession Over Fake Gun

Lil Tjay can’t seem to stay out of trouble, and this time, he recorded the ordeal for his followers to see unfold on Instagram Live. On Tuesday, the 22-year-old was reportedly detained for reckless endangerment in New York City; this would be his second arrest this year.

In the video, which has since been making the rounds on social media, the New York rapper is seen defiantly telling cops to “not touch” him and asking why he’s arrested in a tense interaction that ends with him being placed in the back of a squad car.

“Nah. Do not touch me, bro,” Lil Tjay told officers while standing beside his car. “What am I under arrest for?” When one of the officers told him to turn around, he refused, “No, n***a. No, bro. Hell no. What’s in the car? I don’t know what’s in the car. Don’t touch me. There’s no firearm in the car.”

As his phone ends up in someone else’s possession, onlookers in the crowd can be heard urging the rapper to cooperate. The Bronx native is finally restrained by multiple officers and handcuffed.

The “Gangsta Boo” artist’s lawyer, Dawn Florio, told TMZ that he was filming a short clip for a music video when the police arrived and arrested him for reckless endangerment —  not gun possession as assumed by fans watching the live video unfold.

It’s unclear exactly what prompted the arrest, but Florio released a statement on his behalf to XXL concerning the matter.

“Lil Tjay was arrested by the police in New York City while he was on Instagram Live. He was filming a snippet for a music video,” the statement read. “My client was not arrested for firing a loaded firearm or possessing a loaded firearm. The arrest charge was Reckless Endangerment.”

After police officers hauled Lil Tjay, whose birth name is Tione Merritt, off to jail, they confiscated what appeared to be a “weapon” to identify its make and model. Authorities discovered the gun was fake upon inspection.

Tuesday afternoon, a spokesperson for the NYPD confirmed to Billboard that “police observed a male waving what appeared to be a black firearm from a sunroof of a moving motor vehicle” around 1st Ave. and East 23rd Street.

“The male was taken into custody, and an imitation pistol was recovered,” the spokesperson said.

They further confirmed that Tjay was charged with reckless endangerment, obstructing governmental administration and criminal possession of a weapon.

During an apparent attempted robbery, Lil Tjay was shot seven times in New Jersey last summer in what was a near-fatal experience. Since then, Lil Tjay has had multiple legal troubles.

In January of this year, Lil Tjay was en route to shoot a music video with Ice Spice for their “Gangsta Boo” collaboration at the time when the car that he was a passenger in was pulled over. Along with four others accompanying him, all were arrested.

Despite being parked legally, his lawyer claims police did not offer a credible reason as to why they carried out a search upon stopping the vehicle. However, law enforcement allegedly found four loaded guns without a valid license. Florio insists the firearms did belong to her client and further asserts the NYPD targeted the rapper after he posted about a video shoot on social media.

Two weeks later, Lil Tjay was arrested again for missing a court hearing. In May, Lil Tjay was arrested a third time and forced to turn himself in for a previous gun charge — that, according to Florio, was acquired when cops found guns in his car when he was the victim of a shooting last summer.

“This arrest is not a new gun charge. He had to turn himself in for the case where he was a victim where he was shot multiple times,” his lawyer said, addressing the incident.

This recent run-in comes arrives on the heels of an altercation the “Leaked” rapper was involved in backstage at Hot 97’s Summer Jam on Sunday. The video capturing the scuffle surfaced online, showing the 22-year-old furious as his security team prevents him from going after someone who reportedly hit him first. According to XXL, the incident occurred inside the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.

“You’re gonna be fired!” Lil Tjay can be heard yelling as he continues angrily attempting to confront the unidentified individual.

“Do not touch me!” he tells one of the bodyguards who had to hold the rapper around his waist in order to restrain him.

At the end of the clip, the person holding the camera said: “N***a popped on Lil Tjay, bro.”

While Lil Tjay has miraculously escaped death and has tiptoed around multiple legal woes, it seems the rapper can’t catch a break, consistently making headlines for all the wrong reasons.