The prosecution will proceed “despite claims of self-defense and provocation,” the public prosecutor for Stockholm, Daniel Suneson, said in an email.
The rapper will remain in custody until a trial begins Tuesday, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said in a statement.
The punishment for Rocky could include a fine based on his daily earnings or a maximum two years in prison, a spokeswoman for the Swedish Prosecution Authority said.
The development will sharpen the focus on a case that started as a street brawl, but has ballooned into a diplomatic incident, with Sweden facing accusations of racism and human rights abuses for its treatment of the rapper.
Rocky, 30, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, is accused of assaulting Mustafa Jafari in Stockholm on June 30 after an altercation in the street that was captured on video. The rapper and two other men were detained on July 5 as prosecutors investigated the matter.
Slobodan Jovicic, Rocky’s lawyer, said in a telephone interview Thursday that the rapper acted in self-defense. On July 2, Rocky posted two videos on Instagram that Jovicic said show Jafari and another man following and harassing the rapper, despite being repeatedly asked to stop.
But Suneson, the prosecutor, said Jafari had been punched, kicked and struck with a glass bottle in an attack that lasted several minutes.
Rocky’s case was initially treated as a minor incident, but rapidly escalated after the rapper was detained and tour dates were canceled. Pop stars including Justin Bieber shared a Change.org petition created by Rocky’s team that demanded his release.
As the clamor to free Rocky grew, the case went all the way to the White House: On Saturday, President Donald Trump called Prime Minister Stefan Lofven of Sweden to discuss the rapper’s detention.
Trump said on Twitter that he had told the prime minister he would “personally vouch” for Rocky’s bail if the rapper were to be released. Sweden has no system of bail.
Lofven’s office said in a statement Saturday that the prime minister would not intervene.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.