ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The attorney for St. Petersburg artist and rapper Rod Wave is sounding off after he says the artist, whose legal name is Rodarius Green, was “wrongfully arrested.”
“It's disappointing that a police officer wouldn't do a better job of doing their homework before they put handcuffs on somebody and take him to jail,” Attorney Mark Rankin said in an interview with 10 Tampa Bay.
Green was taken into custody and spent a few hours in jail following a search warrant at a Manatee County home rented in his name. His arrest and mugshot quickly became national news.
Green was initially facing charges of being a felon in possession of ammunition before he was released and the charges dropped.
A spokesperson for the St. Petersburg Police Department said, “It was determined that the charge was inaccurate, and he was released hours later."
“That charge was completely unfounded it was based solely upon the sworn statement of a law enforcement officer who told a judge that he was in possession of ammunition which was not true, and that he was a prior felon, which was not true. In fact, he's never been convicted of any felony,” Rankin explained.
Records show Green has been arrested previously and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor concealed weapon charge in the past, but has never been convicted of a felony.
“When we got to court in Manatee County, the state attorney told the court that they had reviewed the evidence and there was no evidence to support the charge and that he should be released until the judge agreed and they released right then and there ordered that he be released from the jail immediately,” Rankin said.
St. Pete Police Department says they are conducting an internal review of the employee who mistakenly marked Green as a felon.
“Either one of two things happened either they didn't do their job by looking and making sure he was a convicted felon. Or they knew that he was not a convicted felon and went forward with a case anyway. And I hope that it wasn't the second,” Rankin added, saying his client was grateful the state attorney’s office recognized the issue.
The search warrants executed at homes Green rents in Pinellas and Manatee counties were tied to an investigation into an Easter Sunday shooting in St. Pete where four people were injured.
Police say they seized weapons and money and arrested three men involved at a home where Rod Wave was also present.
Investigators say the five men they now have in custody are part of a violent group known as YG or Young Gangsters, who they’ve been investigating and surveilling for years.
Green has not been charged in connection to the shooting and Rankin denies his client has any gang ties.
“All I can say is Rod Wave is not affiliated with any gang or any gangs. I can't comment on anything else that the police department is talking about except for what they arrested him for. Which, obviously, even the state and the judge immediately realized that he was not guilty,” Rankin said.
Police say the investigation into the shooting and YG group is active and more arrests or charges are possible. Detectives say Green has been seen with a number of members of the group since the summer of 2023, adding “The YGs are living in residences and driving in vehicles registered in Rod Waves’s name or his record label’s name.”