In a bizarre twist to the Astroworld proceedings, Travis Scott is believed to have been unable to turn his phone over to lawyers – because it is ‘somewhere at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico’.
Earlier this week, the Sicko Mode rapper was questioned for ‘several hours’ over the deadly crush at the 2021 festival, which left 10 dead and many more injured.
Hundreds of lawsuits were filed against the 32-year-old, as well as promoters Live Nation and others involved in the event – but it was previously ruled that he would not be indicted over the tragedy.
The dad-of-two deposed for around eight hours in Houston on Monday in connection with the lawsuits, with his spokesperson stating that this is ‘typical legal procedure’.
However, it has now been claimed that attorneys for the plaintiffs were forced to file an emergency motion to obtain the electronic records for Scott and his employees, including Cactus Jack general manager David Stromberg, alleging that they had failed to provide the necessary documents.
In response, his legal team responded by claiming that his phone actually fell off a boat in Mexico during a getaway last year, and could not be retrieved.
‘Travis Scott and his team stand apart as having not produced a single text, WeChat communication, video, or photo from their phones – not because they don’t exist – but because his attorneys chose not to image or search their phones the order to do so by the court,’ a motion via the plaintiff’s lawyers, obtained by Rolling Stone, read.
In response, Scott’s attorney, Steve Brody claimed in the court transcript that his device ‘fell off a boat in January of 2022 and landed somewhere at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico and is not able to be retrieved’.
As well as this, the musician didn’t back his phone up over ‘significant hacking concerns’, meaning that the contents of the device will not be retrievable, but messages from Stromberg could be provided by September 27.
In the transcript obtained by the outlet, Judge Kristen Hawkins questioned their efforts, reportedly stating: ‘There does not seem to have been any action, from what I am hearing right now, taken on the part of Mr Scott’s legal team to either, A, secure and download anything from his phone immediately following an event in which 10 people died, or, B, trying to recover text messages from alternate sources when Mr Scott would have the ability to go and get that information, possibly from the carrier, or from other sources.
Brody reportedly explained that they had looked into recovering the messages from Apple and his provider, but were unable to do so.
‘In an ideal situation that would have happened. It did not. And that’s the situation we’re facing right now, which is why we are hopeful that Mr Stromberg’s agreement is going to remedy the situation,’ he added.
On November 5, 2021, more than 50,000 people were in attendance at Scott’s Astroworld Festival when the night ended in tragedy.
As the Grammy-nominee appeared on stage, concertgoers surged forward, with countless fans trampled and crushed.
In June, a grand jury in Texas ruled that he will not be indicted over the incident, , and that ‘no single individual was criminally responsible’.
‘Travis Scott and his team have nothing to hide and are cooperating with all ongoing civil legal proceedings,’ his rep told Rolling Stone in a statement.
‘His actions during and after the festival demonstrate that he has done nothing wrong, as does the fact that he and his team were cleared following the investigation by the Houston Police Department.’
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
MORE : Netflix viewers turn off thriller The Little Things after terrifying opening scene
MORE : Stacey Solomon fans are obsessed with her realistic morning routine
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest Entertainment News Click Here
