Wiz Khalifa received a nine-month prison sentence in Romania after lighting a joint during a festival performance.
Wiz Khalifa landed a nine-month prison sentence in Romania after a court finalized a drug possession case tied to his 2024 music festival performance, where he lit a joint on stage.
The Constanța Court of Appeal issued its ruling on December 18, reversing an earlier decision that had fined the rapper only around $700.
Romanian prosecutors successfully appealed under a law that criminalizes the possession of dangerous drugs for personal use. The incident unfolded during the summer of 2024 when the Pittsburgh-born artist was briefly detained after smoking cannabis during his set at a Romanian festival.
Authorities released him shortly after, but the legal process continued.
Romania enforces some of the toughest drug laws in Europe. While countries like Germany, Portugal and the Netherlands have eased penalties for small-scale cannabis possession, Romania still treats such offenses as criminal, even when intended for personal consumption.
The Romanian court clarified that the case involved only possession, not distribution or trafficking.
Wiz Khalifa has long been vocal about his marijuana use, weaving it into his music and public persona. Tracks like his 2011 hit “Black and Yellow” and the “Kush + Orange Juice” mixtape have become synonymous with his cannabis-friendly image.
He released a sequel to that mixtape in 2025, fifteen years after the original. Despite the ruling, the rapper remains in the United States.
Romania and the U.S. do have an extradition treaty, but according to the U.S. Department of State, extradition is not automatic and depends on several factors, including dual criminality and prosecutorial discretion.
Unless Khalifa travels to a country that enforces Romania’s warrant, he is unlikely to be forced to serve the sentence.
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