South Florida rapper Kodak Black is back in headlines for all the wrong reasons. The rapper was arrested in central Florida on a drug trafficking charge, stemming from a 2025 investigation. He was taken into custody in Orange County, Florida, on a felony drug trafficking charge, with his attorney describing the arrest as a “coordinated surrender” in connection with a November 2025 case.
The arrest marks yet another serious legal chapter for the 28-year-old Pompano Beach native, whose career has long run parallel to a winding record of court appearances and criminal charges. For Kodak Black, whose music career has frequently unfolded alongside high-profile legal battles, the arrest marks another chapter in his long and complicated history with the criminal justice system, which includes multiple arrests involving firearms, drug possession, probation violations, and federal charges.
What Triggered the Arrest
The case traces back to an incident in November 2025, when officers from the Orlando Police Department responded to reports of gunfire near Children’s Safety Village. According to an arrest affidavit cited by multiple outlets, officers encountered a group gathered around several luxury vehicles, including a Lamborghini SUV and a BMW. Police reportedly said they smelled marijuana as they approached the vehicles, prompting a search.
An officer noticed a white substance on a $100 bill inside a Lamborghini SUV, which smelled of cannabis, giving the officer probable cause to search the vehicle. A search of the first vehicle, a BMW SUV, turned up cannabis and a pink pill containing MDMA. They also uncovered suspected narcotics, roughly $37,000 in cash and documents with Kapri’s name inside the second vehicle, a Lamborghini SUV.
The Evidence and the Pink Bag
According to the warrant, officers discovered a pink bag containing a substance later identified by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement as MDMA, along with about $37,000 in cash and documents bearing Kapri’s name. Investigators also compared items found inside the vehicle, including a bag and lighter, to images posted on Kodak Black’s Instagram accounts.
The rapper and others at the scene denied that the bag was theirs; however, when he was informed that there was money in the bag, Kapri tried multiple times to have officers hand him the cash, saying it belonged to his business. The rapper was only arrested after an official report generated last month confirmed the MDMA weighed 25.34 grams, which is well over the limit of 14 grams.
The Formal Charges
Orange County Jail records list the original charge as trafficking more than 10 grams and less than 200 grams of MDMA, the drug commonly known as ecstasy or molly. The Orlando Police Department confirmed: “The Orlando Police Department obtained an arrest warrant for Bill Kapri on a charge of Trafficking in MDMA (14 grams or more, less than 200 grams). On May 6, 2026, Bill Kapri turned himself in and is currently in custody at the Orange County jail.”
Under Florida law, trafficking charges are frequently tied to the quantity of a substance allegedly possessed rather than proof of intent to sell. In other words, a person can face a trafficking charge based on statutory thresholds tied to weight alone. Under Florida law, drug trafficking allegations can carry mandatory prison sentences depending on the quantity involved, even when prosecutors do not explicitly allege large-scale distribution.
Bond Hearing and the Judge’s Ruling
On Thursday afternoon, a judge set a high bond of $75,000 for the 28-year-old. The bond was set high because of Kapri’s 12 previous felony convictions. His defense attorney argued that because Black flew in from California to turn himself in, and given the evidence surrounding his arrest, he should be given a $10,000 bond.
The judge noted that although Black did not claim ownership of a bag found at the scene, “you were requesting that the funds within the bag be turned over to you. So there at least is some tie, it seems like to the court, to that bag.” Kapri entered a written plea of not guilty and asked for a jury trial on Thursday. He also waived appearing in person at a future arraignment hearing in state court.
The Defense’s Position
Kodak Black’s attorney, Bradford Cohen, has publicly disputed the allegations and argued that the evidence linking the rapper to the drugs is weak. According to Cohen, Kodak was not inside the vehicle where police allegedly discovered the MDMA. The attorney reportedly argued that fingerprint evidence referenced in the case pertained to a legally prescribed medication bottle found in the vehicle and not the alleged MDMA itself.
Cohen stated: “Instead of simple possession, they doubled down and filed it as a trafficking charge.” His lawyer, Bradford Cohen, in a statement to TMZ called Kodak’s arrest a “total joke,” emphasizing that he was nowhere near the drugs when police recovered them. The lawyer plans to fight the trafficking charge, which he says has a “weak legal basis.”
Release Conditions After Bail
The rapper was released after posting $75,000 bail, and he will have to adhere to a series of strict rules should he want to remain out of jail. According to court documents, 28-year-old Kapri must stay away from illegal drugs, and a judge also forbade him from having contact with any of his associates. He was additionally barred from returning to the crime scene, and he is not allowed to carry a gun.
The conditions reflect both the seriousness of the charge and the court’s view of Kapri’s broader record. The state also requested that “in light of his occupation and lack of ties to Orlando,” bond be increased and that he surrender his passport. The defense pushed back firmly on that request, and the passport surrender condition was not ultimately imposed.
A Career Shadowed by Legal Trouble
As Kodak Black, Kapri has sold more than 30 million singles, with massive hits such as “Super Gremlin,” which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2022. The 28-year-old last released his eighth and most recent album, Just Getting Started, in late 2025, which peaked at Number 77 on the Billboard 200.
Community Work Versus Courtroom Reality
He was honored by the city of Pompano Beach with a key to the city in July 2025 for efforts that city leaders said have touched thousands of lives. The city said that he had donated air conditioning units to families during sweltering Florida summers, distributed hundreds of turkeys during the holidays, and regularly provided Christmas gifts and bicycles to local children.
In 2023, police in Plantation, Florida arrested Kapri after finding him asleep at the wheel with white powder around his mouth. Although authorities said the powder initially tested positive for cocaine, a lab test later revealed it was oxycodone, for which Kapri obtained a prescription. The arrest was a violation of his probation from an unrelated case, which led to him being locked up in Miami for two months. The contrast between his genuine charitable contributions and his repeated brushes with the law paints a complicated portrait of one of Florida’s most prominent rap figures.
What Comes Next
The rapper was not arrested at the scene in 2025. Instead, the case unfolded over several months before formal charges were filed in 2026. Cohen has publicly said he expects the case to fall apart, disputing the prosecution’s theory of possession. With a not guilty plea entered and a jury trial requested, the legal process is just getting started.
Whether the defense’s argument holds weight in court remains to be seen. The bond was set high because of Kapri’s 12 previous felony convictions, a number that will almost certainly weigh heavily in how prosecutors and the judge approach any future proceedings. At 28, Kodak Black has more talent, more charitable goodwill, and more courtroom experience than most artists his age – and right now, all three are being put to the test simultaneously.
