Rapper Boosie Badazz is behind bars because police used Instagram to monitor suspected criminal activity, according to recently unsealed federal court records.
The Louisiana rapper – born Torrence Hatch Jr. – was arrested by federal authorities on Wednesday (June 14) at a San Diego courthouse, moments after a local firearms case against him was dismissed by the San Diego County prosecutors.
A federal judge unsealed the criminal complaint on Friday, revealing the feds had arrested Boosie on a firearms 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
Documents obtained by the outlet show Boosie was originally arrested on May 6, after local police believed him to be an associate of a “known” gang member.
A San Diego police detective was ‘conducting intelligence gathering’, scrolling through the Instagram account of a ‘known neighborhood Crip’, when the detective noticed footage of a man ‘filming a music video in this which 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 allegedly had a gun in the waistband of his pants.
TMZ obtained screenshots from the video, which showed a man who looked like Boosie standing in the yard of a house. The man wore a white shirt and red pants with a gun hidden in the back of his falling pants.
According to the criminal complaint, the detective went to Boosie’s IG account and noticed he was live-streaming an Instagram story at a location allegedly “associated with the criminal street gang Neighborhood Crip.”
Prosecutors said the San Diego Police Department then dispatched a helicopter and officers to the field to locate the rapper.
According to the complaint, Boosie was spotted getting into a black SUV. Police followed the vehicle and stopped it after the driver allegedly ran 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 firearms, including the “same gun depicted in Hatch’s rear seatbelt” in the Instagram video, according to the complaint.
Boosie was arrested for possession of weapons, but the local case was later dismissed
It’s unclear why the feds decided to take up the case and charge the rapper with violating federal laws prohibiting a previously convicted felon from owning a firearm.
The rapper had previous felony convictions in his home state of Louisiana for drug trafficking.
He is being held without bond in San Diego, at least until his next court hearing on June 19.