Top5, a Toronto rapper currently in jail as he awaits his murder trial, dropped a video for his song "21 Questions" with G Herbo, which features scenes that were shot from his cell.
Early in the song, Top5 raps "I was 18 when I bought a gun, 22 when I shot your son," from his cell. The rapper was brought back to Toronto after a stint in California and was charged with the first-degree murder of Hashim Omar Hashi that happened on Jan. 31, 2021.
According to CTV News Toronto, Top5, whose real name is Hassan Ali, is a member of the "Go Getem Gang," a criminal organization that attempted to take revenge on his brother's alleged murderer.
After Top5's team released the video, Hunter Kell, spokesperson for the Solicitor General issued a statement to CTV News explaining the launch of an investigation into how Top5 recorded his scenes from his cell.
"The ministry is aware of an unacceptable incident involving a video posted online that appears to contain images of secure areas of the Maplehurst Correctional Complex," the statement read. "Unauthorized photography of any kind is strictly prohibited inside provincial correctional facilities [...] The ministry has launched a full investigation into this incident and appropriate action will be taken."
Prior to his arrest, Top5 had removed his GPS tracking bracelet and fled to California, though police eventually found him via social media.
Though there is precedence for Canadian trials to bring up rap lyrics, it's unclear if prosecutors will try to use these lyrics as evidence.
