After two years, rapper NLE Choppa’s gun and drug case has ended in a Broward court

Grethel Aguila
·2 min read
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Memphis rapper NLE Choppa must complete a year of probation after striking a deal with prosecutors in exchange for a plea in a 2022 Broward County gun and drug case.

NLE Choppa, whose real name is Bryson Potts, entered a no contest plea Friday morning before Broward Circuit Court Judge Barbara Duffy. The rapper, who was represented by defense attorney Brad Cohen, will be able to travel nationally and internationally through his probation period.

The rapper was ordered to forfeit any firearms and complete a firearm safety course as well as 40 hours of community service.

In 2021, NLE Choppa was charged with burglary, carrying a concealed firearm as well as possession of Alprazolam, also known as Xanax. As part of the agreement, prosecutors dropped the drug charge and reduced the other two charges to misdemeanors.

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, December 8, 2023 - Rapper NLE Choppa, whose real name is Bryson Potts, center, shakes hands with his attorney, Brad Cohen, right, as he talks to a co-defendant in the case, left, before Judge Barbara Duffy in courtroom 6900 at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, December 8, 2023 - Rapper NLE Choppa, whose real name is Bryson Potts, center, shakes hands with his attorney, Brad Cohen, right, as he talks to a co-defendant in the case, left, before Judge Barbara Duffy in courtroom 6900 at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

While he declined to comment Friday, NLE Choppa released a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, after his arrest in 2021, alleging that he was targeted by police and that media outlets were using the incident to smear his image.

“During this arrest I was set up, substances were planted on me that I don’t consume/use/own, my name was lied upon, and I was mistreated in the process,” he said in the statement.

What happened that night?

According to police, several masked men were caught on tape jumping over the fence of a Superior Towing lot in Davie on March 28, 2021.

After pacing around the lot for some time, two men hopped into a silver Ford Expedition, police say. The SUV was pulled over while still in the parking lot.

One of the men, captured on camera wearing a black jacket with white sleeves, was identified by police as then 18-year-old NLE Choppa.

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, December 8, 2023 - Rapper NLE Choppa, whose real name is Bryson Potts, center, along with his attorney, Brad Cohen, left and a co-defendant in the case, right, is set to enter a change of plea in a 2021 Broward drug and gun case before Judge Barbara Duffy in courtroom 6900 at the Broward County Courthouse, 201 SE 6th St. Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

After searching the SUV, police found a fully loaded Glock 27 with an extended magazine and AK-47 Draco pistol in the back seat, according to court records. They also located a purple-and-yellow backpack that contained marijuana and a handful of Xanax pills.

The rapper, according to police, admitted to jumping over the fence and explained that he did so to retrieve a watch from inside a towed car. He denied knowing anything about the guns, but claimed that the backpack was his.

In 2019, NLE Choppa rose to the public eye with certified platinum-song “Shotta Flow.” He launched record label No Love Entertainment that same year.