- Rapper Afroman is being sued by officers who say he wrongfully used clips of them raiding his home.
- They said they were humiliated and demand proceeds from music videos he made about the raid.
Rap artist Afroman is being sued by seven police officers who say his music videos inappropriately used footage of them raiding his home.
In a lawsuit dated March 13, four deputies, two sergeants, and one detective from Adams County Sheriff's Office in Ohio accused the rapper of profiting off their "humiliation" and "mental distress."
They demanded up to $100,000 of the proceeds from his songs, music videos, concert tickets, and merchandise sales, which they say were promoted using footage of the cops without their consent, per the lawsuit seen by Insider.
The officers had a search warrant to raid Afroman's home in August. Afroman, whose real name is Joseph Foreman, was cited in the warrant, a copy of which was obtained by FOX affiliate WXIX-TV reporter Ken Baker. The warrant was issued for an investigation into possession of illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia, as well as kidnapping.
Foreman was not present when police arrived at his home. But his wife filmed the raid, and the rapper also obtained footage from his family's security cameras. He was not charged with any crime after the raid.
Foreman then featured the clips in music videos on YouTube for at least two of his songs.
"Lemon Pound Cake" features Foreman singing about how the officers sought to find drugs in his home, but instead discovered lemon pound cake on the kitchen counter.
In "Will You Help Me Repair My Door," Foreman uses clips of the officers looking through his possessions.
The officers' lawsuit said they received death threats because of the music videos and several social media posts Foreman made with the footage. They also said they "suffered embarrassment, ridicule, emotional distress, humiliation, and loss of reputation."
The complaint also demands that the rapper stop using footage of the officers on social media and in his music videos.
In a Thursday Instagram post responding to the lawsuit, Foreman said he plans to counter-sue.
"I am a law-abiding taxpaying citizens who was violated by criminals camouflaged by law-enforcement!" he wrote.
"My video footage is my property," he added.
The Adams County Sheriff's Office and an attorney for Foreman did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment sent after business hours.