Lil Wayne Pleads Guilty to Gun Charge for Flying With Firearm in 2019

Lil Wayne has pleaded guilty to a gun charge after he was hit with one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon last month.

The Miami Herald reports that the rapper, who was caught transporting a gold-plated handgun on a plane trip from Los Angeles to Miami last December, pleaded guilty on Friday. "Your honor, I plead guilty," he said during a virtual hearing in Miami federal court. Since he served an 8-month jail sentence in New York in 2010 after he was convicted of criminal possession of a weapon, he is not permitted to own a firearm as a convicted felon.

The weapon in question was discovered during the search of the jet he traveled in on Dec. 23, 2019, but he was released at the time. The search of the plane happened after federal agents allegedly received "a tip about weapons and marijuana." A small amount of cocaine, ecstasy, and oxycodone was also found at the time but Wayne was not hit with any drug charges. Weezy was charged in November and is free on a $250,000 bond, but is facing up to ten years behind bars. He is due to be sentenced on Jan. 28, although it remains unclear if he will serve any significant time.

His guilty plea comes a day after Wayne was sued by his former manager for $20 million over allegedly unpaid commission. He was also criticized by the hip-hop community at large in October after he endorsed Donald Trump for president, meeting him in person and co-signing the so-called "Platinum Plan."