Swedish officials rebuff Trump’s bid to free A$AP Rocky from jail

Swedish officials on Friday rebuffed President Trump’s bid to free A$AP Rocky — who is jailed on assault charges after a street brawl in Stockholm — a day after Trump tweeted that he was “very disappointed” the Harlem-born rapper remained behind bars.

“Sweden and Prime Minister Stefan Lofven have been very clear in the dialogue with both the White House and directly with the American president, that in Sweden everyone is equal before the law, and that the government cannot interfere in legal proceedings,” a spokesman for the government told Reuters.

Even former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt chimed in, saying it was “right of the government not to go into a mud wrestling match with Trump.”

“That is his element, and should not be Sweden’s,” Bildt said.

A$AP Rocky, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, has been held with two others since July 3 in connection with the June 30 brawl in the Swedish capital.

Prosecutor Daniel Suneson said in a statement that the charges against the Grammy-winning performer came about because he is “suspected of assault causing actual bodily harm.”

Because Sweden has no bail system, all three men remain in custody.

Trump has lobbied on the rapper’s behalf after meeting with artist Kanye West.

In a July 19 tweet, Trump said he had a “friendly and respectful” phone conversation with Lofven, who “assured me that American citizen A$AP Rocky will be treated fairly.”

But things went sour when Lofven declined to intervene in the case, prompting an online outburst from Trump this week.

“Very disappointed in Prime Minister Stefan Lofven for being unable to act,” Trump tweeted Thursday. “Sweden has let our African American Community down in the United States. I watched the tapes of A$AP Rocky, and he was being followed and harassed by troublemakers.”

“Treat Americans fairly,” he said.

Rocky’s lawyer, Slobodan Jovicic, said his client did nothing wrong.

“Rakim Mayers feels that he acted in self-defense,” Jovicic said. “He is claiming that he is innocent, and in that perspective he of course is very sad.”