Nicki Minaj released from custody after arrest in Amsterdam after drugs were allegedly found

Singer Nicki Minaj has been released from police custody in Amsterdam. Her arrest came when police allegedly found drugs in her luggage, a spokesman for the Dutch border police said.

Their Saturday night show in Manchester was postponed. Fans had already filled the Co-op Live Arena before Live Nation announced the show would not go ahead.

Robert van Kapel, a spokesman for the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee, the border police responsible for Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, said The Independent Earlier on Saturday it was reported that the pop star had been arrested and was in custody.

Although Kapel did not name Minaj, who was active on Instagram while Amsterdam police were trying to arrest her, he said he could “confirm that we arrested a 41-year-old American woman because we carried out a check at Schiphol Airport and found soft drugs on her, and the export of soft drugs to the Netherlands is illegal.”

Minaj is 41 years old. In the Netherlands, marijuana, which is legal there, is considered a “soft drug.” In her video, Minaj revealed that her bag contained pre-rolled joints that she said belonged to someone else.

At around 4 p.m. EST, officials issued an update stating that the “suspect has been released and she can now proceed,” according to PA Ready. Officials added that the woman will have to pay “a fine” to be determined by the district attorney’s office.

In Minaj’s Instagram video, an officer can be heard saying they wanted to arrest her for “drug possession,” a charge she denied.

An officer tells Minaj that her bags were initially subjected to a “random, quick search,” but then police wanted to conduct a full search. When she asked why, she was told that an officer “doesn’t believe you don’t have more on you than you say you do.” It was also pointed out that her decision to film the search made the officer suspicious.

Minaj initially refused to go with the police.

“I’m not going in there. I need a lawyer,” she told the officer.

After some back and forth, Minaj finally gives in and gets into a police vehicle.

During her transport, she told officers she was worried she might not make her next show. The officer assured her that they would “try to get her there as quickly as possible.”

The incident with police occurred during Minaj’s Pink Friday 2 World Tour. She has a show scheduled in Manchester, England, for Saturday night and had performed the day before in Amsterdam, the first stop on her European tour.

On Saturday, Ms Minaj gave some details of her encounter, saying police “said they found weed and another group of people needed to come here to weigh the pre-rolled joints” – referring to pre-rolled marijuana joints that can typically be purchased in stores.

“Remember they took my bags without my consent. My security already told them those pre-rolls belong to him,” she wrote on X. “Oh yeah, and the pilot wants me to delete my (Instagram) post.”

She later said she had to make a statement to her security staff at a police station.

At around 11:00 a.m. EST, Minaj wrote that her plane was scheduled to depart “two hours ago.”

Fans were already trying to sell their tickets as they expected tonight’s show in Manchester to be cancelled – but Live Nation said the tickets would remain valid for a later performance.

Minaj also blamed her former management for her travel woes, accusing them of “adding $30-50,000 to my flight and pocketing the money.” She claimed their goal was to “make me late and pocket $40,000” by forcing her to miss a flight and book another one.

“Jealousy is a disease. You know the rest,” she wrote.

Saturday’s show will be Minaj’s first in Manchester this year. Late last year, Minaj added a second Manchester date – May 30 – due to overwhelming demand for her first show.

The rapper set ticket sales records with her Pink Friday 2 World Tour. Not only was it the highest-grossing tour of her career, but according to Billboard Boxscore, the tour grossed $67 million and sold 439,000 tickets, making it the highest-grossing and best-selling rap tour by a female in Boxscore history.

Minaj is scheduled to play in Birmingham on Sunday and London on Tuesday.