SB LIX performer arrested for halftime protest

A performer astatine Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl LIX halftime show successful February has been arrested after holding up a Sudanese flag with the connection "Sudan and Free Gaza," Louisiana State Police announced Thursday.

The performer, Zul-Qarnain Kwame Nantambu, 41, of New Orleans surrendered to authorities aft an apprehension warrant was obtained, authorities constabulary said. He was booked into the Orleans Parish Justice Center connected charges of resisting an serviceman and disturbing the bid by interruption of a lawful assembly.

State constabulary accidental troopers began investigating soon aft the Feb. 9 crippled astatine the Caesars Superdome and recovered that Nantambu "deviated from his assigned role" and disrupted the halftime amusement by moving crossed the tract with the flag. Security and instrumentality enforcement unit ran aft him, and helium refused to comply with their commands to stop, authorities constabulary said successful a connection Thursday.

"In coordination with the National Football League, troopers learned that Nantambu had support to beryllium connected the tract during the performance, but did not person support to show arsenic helium did," authorities constabulary said.

Neither jailhouse records nor online tribunal records database a lawyer for Nantambu who could beryllium reached for comment.

The apprehension comes aft New Orleans constabulary said soon aft the shot crippled astatine Caesars Superdome that the formed subordinate would not look charges. But it was Louisiana State Police who announced the charges Thursday.

New Orleans constabulary initially responded to the disturbance, but Louisiana State Police past took implicit the investigation, partially owed to the performer's entree to a highly secured area, Louisiana State Police Sgt. Katharine Stegall said successful an email to The Associated Press.

The NFL connected Thursday said it commends the Louisiana State Police for "its diligence and professionalism."

"We instrumentality immoderate effort to disrupt immoderate portion of an NFL game, including the halftime show, precise earnestly and are pleased this idiosyncratic volition beryllium held accountable to the fullest grade of the law," the NFL said. "In summation to the ongoing transgression case, the NFL banned the idiosyncratic from attending immoderate NFL games oregon events."

The formed subordinate was among dozens of dancers wearing achromatic outfits. He held the emblem successful the aerial portion lasting connected the extortion of a car that was a main diagnostic of the hip-hop artist's performance. He past jumped disconnected signifier and ran crossed the tract earlier being tackled by respective men successful suits.

President Donald Trump was successful the stadium for the game, but it wasn't wide if helium saw the protest.

In a abstracted case, Nantambu is listed arsenic the unfortunate of a May 17 shooting extracurricular a personage boxing lawsuit successful Miami.

Former NFL subordinate Antonio Brown is facing an attempted execution charge aft authorities accidental helium grabbed a handgun from a information idiosyncratic astatine the boxing lawsuit and fired 2 shots astatine Nantambu. Nantambu told investigators that 1 of the bullets grazed his neck.