Moroccan rapper ElGrande Toto was taken into custody Monday night after multiple charges were filed against him for making public statements about cannabis use, a justice source said.

The Casablanca-born rapper, who is a huge star in the Arabic-speaking music world, had told reporters gathered after one of his concerts in late September: “I smoke hash – so what? … That doesn’t mean I set a bad example.”

His comments triggered an outcry in Morocco, the 26-year-old was banned from leaving the country by the authorities on Thursday and also summoned by the police in Casablanca.

A prosecutor at a Casablanca court decided late Monday to take Taha Fahssi – ElGrande Toto’s real name – into custody after complaints were filed by “three artists, a journalist and a police officer,” a justice source told AFP on condition of anonymity With .

According to the daily Le Matin, the rapper is the subject of a preliminary investigation, which would focus on all his publications, digital content and statements “which may contain criminal elements”.

He was taken into custody a day after he publicly apologized for his spontaneous comments.

“I apologize to anyone offended by my words, starting with the authorities and my public,” ElGrande Toto said at a packed news conference in Rabat on Sunday.

“This controversy wasn’t planned – it just got too big and is a good lesson for me.”

After ElGrande Toto made his remarks on September 23, a Belgium-based journalist filed a complaint accusing him of “inciting drug use,” the journalist’s lawyer, Mohamed Karrout, said.

The rapper was the most sought-after Arab artist in the Maghreb on Spotify in 2021 with more than 50 million downloads. His YouTube channel now has 2.7 million subscribers, and popular videos attract tens of millions of views.