Rapper Arrested, Tried To Bring Gun On Plane In Newark: Officials

NEWARK, NJ — Hip-hop artist LaRon Louis James has been apprehended and faces weapons-related charges after he allegedly tried to get a gun through security at Newark Liberty International Airport on Friday evening.

On Monday, Port Authority police arrested James, 36, of Totowa – who uses the stage name “Juelz Santana,” – after he allegedly fled the airport following the incident.

According to the Port Authority of NY/NJ, at 6 p.m., a passenger walked out the exit of the C-1 security checkpoint at Newark Airport, leaving two bags and identification. A check of the bag by TSA recovered a firearm: a loaded Derringer .38 caliber. The suspect then left Newark Airport in a taxi, police said.

• See related article: Rapper Juelz Santana Flees Newark Airport After Gun Found, Cops Say

James surrendered himself to law enforcement early Monday morning, authorities said.

Authorities charged James with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and one count of carrying a weapon on an aircraft, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office (NJ District). He is expected to appear in a Newark federal court on Monday.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office released the following allegations:

“On March 9, James submitted a carry-on bag for inspection at Newark Liberty International Airport. While he waited for his bag to be screened, James allegedly requested that the bag be examined quickly because he was going to miss his flight to San Francisco. During the x-ray screening of James’s luggage, a Transportation Security Administration agent identified a suspected firearm and contacted the Port Authority police. Upon seeing that his bag had attracted additional attention, James left the security checkpoint area without his belongings, including his driver’s license and boarding pass, and departed the airport in a taxi. Further investigation of James’s bag revealed that it contained a Derringer .38 caliber handgun, which was loaded with two rounds.”

James was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a 2013 conviction for manufacturing and distributing a controlled dangerous substance, the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated.

Both charges in the complaint carry a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison, federal prosecutors said.

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