YouTube star Jake Paul has broken his silence one week after the FBI raided his Calabasas, California home. He opened up about the incident in a since-deleted YouTube video and denied circulating, “absurd” rumors.
In the video Paul said, “Just to clarify things and set the record straight, the FBI raid is entirely related to the Arizona looting situation that happened.” He continued saying, “It’s an investigation. There are rumors about it having to do with so many other things that have nothing to do with me or my character and the s—t that people are making up is absolutely absurd.”
The FBI raided Paul’s home on August 5 as a part of an ongoing investigation into “allegations of criminal acts surrounding the incident at Scottsdale Fashion Square in May 2020.”
Paul was charged in June with criminal trespassing and unlawful assembly for attending a protest that was declared unlawful. Authorities said Paul illegally entered and remained inside the mall. Since then, the Scottsdale City Attorney’s Office dismissed the charges so that the FBI could take over and continue the investigation.
In the video, Paul alludes to cutting ties with a friend after the raid. “That being said, when I become aware of someone around me who is doing malicious things they are immediately cut out of my life. I don’t put up with bulls—t, I don’t surround myself with bad people. If someone does something bad, they will be removed from my life.”
At the end of the video, Paul says, “My goal right now is to continue to focus on my life, myself, boxing, music.” He later added, “Thank you to all the fans who have been sticking by my side through all of these crazy times.”
