A$AP Rocky has been sued for defamation by his alleged shooting victim.
Terell Ephron, also known as A$AP Relli, has filed a lawsuit against the fellow rapper and his lawyer Joe Tacopina over the remarks Tacopina made about him after he accused Rocky of shooting and injuring him in November 2021.
After Ephron filed a civil suit over the incident last year, Tacopina allegedly went on a press campaign to "impugn and malign" him by painting him as a liar and an extortionist.
According to Rolling Stone, Ephron's lawyers claimed in the suit that he has "suffered damage to his reputation and his personal brand; goodwill in the community as a member of A$AP Mob" and potentially lost future income "as a result of the negative publicity" stemming from Tacopina's comments.
He has asked for punitive or exemplary damages, plus legal fees.
In a statement to TMZ, Tacopina said, "This is actually nothing more than a publicity stunt which is going to backfire badly. I more than welcome this lawsuit especially because the resolution of the criminal case has not happened yet. This opens up this extortionist to depositions under oath now before the resolution of the criminal case. It will expose the fraud he committed and unfortunately for his lawyers, it will cause them to be responsible for legal fees in this case. They don't know the facts of this case or the actions taken by their client. But, I will be more than happy to educate them."
Rocky, real name Rakim Mayers, was arrested in April 2022 and subsequently charged with two counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in August 2022 and is scheduled to attend a hearing on 8 November.
Ephron filed a civil lawsuit against his former friend last year for assault, battery, negligence, and emotional distress. He claimed Rocky lured him into an alley in Hollywood and "intentionally fired multiple shots" at him, with bullet fragments allegedly striking his hand.
Rocky's team has maintained that the rapper did not shoot Ephron.
