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It appears that federal law enforcement had been tracking Juice WRLD’s movements for at least a month before his death Sunday, with a report saying that U.S. Customs agents had first searched his private plane in November before it left for Australia.
The Chicago hip-hop star died early Sunday after he and his entourage arrived by private plane at his hometown’s Midway Airport.
TMZ reported that the rapper and his entourage, including his girlfriend, Ally Lotti, had a run-in with law enforcement at Los Angeles International Airport on Nov. 18. That’s when customs agents conducted a search of their plane for contraband. The plane was bound for Sydney, Australia.
Sources told TMZ that drug-sniffing dogs were “all over” Juice WRLD and his entourage and their luggage.
It’s not known if the agents, under the auspices of Homeland Security, found anything during their search. However, the plane was eventually allowed to take off with Juice WRLD and others aboard. Lotti chronicled their Australia trip via Instagram.
The 21-year-old rapper died early Sunday after collapsing and going into convulsions while police and federal agents were again searching his plane for contraband after it had arrived from Van Nuys Airport in California, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Juice WRLD’s girlfriend, Ally Lotti, told police that he had been using the painkiller Percocet when asked if he had any medical issues or had ingested any drugs, sources told the Tribune. She also said the rapper “has a drug problem.”
Federal agents quickly administered Narcan, a drug used to revive people thought to be overdosing on opioids, a Chicago police spokesman told the New York Times.
The Chicago Fire Department also was on the scene in under seven minutes, the spokesman said. But the rapper, who was taken to a nearby hospital, was pronounced dead just after 3 a.m.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office said it would not be able to determine the cause of death until additional studies were completed, including a toxicology report. Police said they did not suspect foul play.
TMZ and the Tribune reported that Sunday’s search of luggage on the Gulfstream jet turned up 41 “vacuum-sealed” bags of marijuana — or about 70 pounds — along with six bottles of prescription codeine cough syrup.
The search also uncovered two 9mm pistols, a .40-caliber pistol, a high-capacity ammunition magazine and metal-piercing bullets, sources told the Tribune. Two men identified by police as bodyguards for the rapper were charged with misdemeanor offenses for illegally possessing the guns and ammunition.
The Tribune also reported that the officers and agents had been waiting at the Atlantic Aviation hangar at Midway Airport early Sunday because they suspected the musician’s private plane was carrying contraband.
TMZ said it’s possible that agents uncovered something in their Nov. 18 search that led them to want to search the musician’s plane again on Sunday.
Sources also told TMZ that the pilot had reported Juice WRLD’s bodyguards for having the handguns — which is illegal if they are not packed properly or if the bodyguard doesn’t have a permit.
Juice WRLD’s death led to an outpouring of grief from fans and other artists, including Drake and Chance the Rapper, who remembered him as a kind and innovative young talent. Halsey praised him for having “the fastest brain in the game,” while his label said he was “a gentle soul whose creativity knew no bounds.”
Juice WRLD rocketed to mainstream stardom with the success of “Lucid Dreams” and his other melodic, free-styled rap songs on his debut album “Goodbye & Good Riddance.”
After the album started racking up millions of streams on SoundCloud, he reportedly signed a $3 million deal for his second album, “Death Race for Love,” which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart in March.
In his lyrics and on social media, Juice WRLD was open about his history of mental health issues and drug abuse.
In early July, he announced that he had quit using the painkiller codeine because of his love for Lotti. In a tweet, Juice WRLD described an episode of tweaking (binging) that terrified Lotti, and he said he deeply regretted it. The rapper referred to what they had together as “the real love I have found.”
