Wiz Khalifa sentenced to nine months jail in Romania for smoking cannabis on stage

A Romanian appeals court has sentenced American rapper Wiz Khalifa to nine months in prison after ruling that he illegally possessed and smoked cannabis during a music festival performance in Romania.

The artist, whose real name is Thomaz Cameron Jibril, admitted to smoking a joint while performing at the Beach, Please! festival in Costinești in July 2024. Following the incident, Romanian police briefly detained and questioned him before releasing him. Prosecutors later charged him with possession of “risk drugs” for personal use.

Initially, a lower court fined Khalifa 3,600 Romanian lei (around £619). However, the Constanța Court of Appeal overturned that ruling, replacing the fine with a custodial sentence. The court said the punishment was increased because the act sent “a message of normalisation of illegal conduct” and encouraged drug use among young people.

In its written judgment, the court described the incident as an “ostentatious act,” noting that the rapper consumed cannabis on stage in front of a predominantly young audience at a popular music festival.

Khalifa was sentenced in absentia and is currently in the United States. He has continued to perform publicly and share content from his home on social media and streaming platforms. The BBC has contacted the artist for comment.

A day after the incident last year, Khalifa posted on X that he did not intend to offend Romania, adding that authorities treated him respectfully and released him shortly after questioning.

Romanian criminologist Vlad Zaha told BBC News that the sentence was “unusually harsh” and said there was little chance the United States would extradite the artist. He cited Khalifa’s celebrity status, Romania’s limited leverage in extradition cases, and the legal status of cannabis in parts of the US as key factors.

Although cannabis is legal for medical and recreational use in several US states, it remains illegal under Romanian law and under US federal law. Khalifa, who has publicly promoted cannabis culture and launched his own marijuana brand in 2016, has not indicated whether he plans to appeal the ruling.

The case has sparked debate in Romania over proportionality in drug-related sentencing, particularly involving high-profile international figures.