Ja Rule Dismissed From A Civil Suit Over Fyre Festival

Ja Rule may still be taking knocks in the court of public opinion over his role in 2017’s infamous Fyre Festival, but his legal troubles over the doomed event may soon be over.

A federal judge in Manhattan ruled that the rapper, who has previously done time for tax evasion, can be dismissed from a civil suit over the festival — for which Ja Rule served as a promoter — filed by cheated ticket holders who paid between $400 and $1,000 to attend.

The festival was billed as a luxury event in the Bahamas that came complete with yachts packed with world-class models, concerts by famous bands and an island with a shark petting zoo — and Ja Rule, whose real name is Jeffrey Atkins, promoted it through his social media accounts.

“The stage is set!!! In less than 24 hours, the first annual Fyre Festival begins. #festivallife,” Ja Rule posted on his Twitter account.

But when festival goers arrived, they didn’t find the as-promised celebrity chefs or A-list talent. Instead, ticket holders found was a dirty island with no electricity or sanitation, disaster tents instead of luxury suites and slices of bread and cheese instead of haute cuisine.

Manhattan federal court Judge P. Kevin Castel ruled on Wednesday, however, that the aggrieved attendees did not meet the legal standard to bring fraud claims against Ja Rule and another defendant, Grant Margolin, the festival’s chief marketing officer.

Ja Rule is “not alleged to have known of individual ticket or merchandise sales,” the judge said. “In December 2016 he posted on his personal Twitter account that the Festival would be ‘FOMO – inducing’ and one thousand times better than Coachella. These statements have been found to be no more than puffery.”

While Castel dismissed all claims in the suit, he gave the plaintiffs a three-week window to come forward with new evidence to re-file a fraud claim against the rapper.

“Mr. Atkins is thankful for today’s ruling and for the Court’s time and attention,” said Ryan Smith, Ja Rule’s attorney. “Justice was done today.”

Festival organizer Billy McFarland was convicted of defrauding investors out of $27.4 million and was sentenced to six months in prison. He’s serving time alongside Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former attorney; and Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino of “Jersey Shore” fame.

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