Gigi Hadid arrested for weed in the Cayman Islands

Model Gigi Hadid and a friend were arrested in the Cayman Islands last week on marijuana allegations, customs officials confirmed on Tuesday. After appearing in court and paying a fine, the pair continued on their vacation and have since left the Caribbean state, according to multiple media reports.

Hadid, a self-proclaimed “nepo baby” (her father is a real estate developer and her mother starred in “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” after a 15-year modeling career), was arrested along with her friend Leah Nicole McCarthy on July 10, according to Cayman Islands Customs and Border Protection officials, after they arrived on a private plane from New York City.

“During a search of their luggage, ganja and paraphernalia for consuming ganja were found in the luggage of both passengers,” according to a report by island news source Cayman Marl Road. “The quantities were relatively small and apparently intended for personal use.”

The two women were arrested and taken to a detention center where they were released on bail. Two days after their arrival, Hadid and McCarthy were charged with “suspicion of importing ganja and importing paraphernalia for ganja consumption.” They later appeared in summary court, where they pleaded guilty and agreed to pay a $1,000 fine. According to the customs officials, they were then released with their files in good order.

Ronde Coletta, Hadid’s rep, told the Washington Post that the supermodel bought the cannabis with a medical marijuana recommendation, noting that medical cannabis has been legal in Grand Cayman since 2017.

“Her record remains clear and she has enjoyed the rest of her time on the island,” said Coletta.

After being free, Hadid and McCarthy continued on their vacation. According to media reports, they were spotted at a karaoke bar taking selfies by the pool, which were later posted to Instagram.

“All’s well that ends well,” Hadid captioned the post, which wasn’t specifically about her arrest.

Cannabis policy reform in the Cayman Islands

In 2021, cannabis activists in the Cayman Islands began collecting signatures for a voter initiative to decriminalize marijuana. If passed, the proposal would also erase the records of people convicted of using or possessing small amounts of cannabis. And last year, the Cayman Islands legislature voted to hold a referendum that would decriminalize small amounts of marijuana. Should any of these become law, the island nation will join others in the Caribbean that have decriminalized cannabis or legalized medical marijuana, including Puerto Rico, Dominica, Jamaica and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Orrie Merren IV, a civil attorney who drafted the voter-led initiative, said the proposal was designed to address the disproportionate impact of cannabis prohibition on the islands’ young adults, many of whom live in lower-income communities.

“I find it quite a burdensome burden for them to receive a criminal charge that would then bar them from future employment or, in certain cases, could affect their ability to travel for school, college or trade degrees,” Merren told the Los Angeles Times, referring to young Cayman Islanders. He said he knows at least one person who cannot travel to the United States because of a marijuana possession charge.

Merren found that while residents in both affluent and low-income communities use drugs, arrests of low-income residents are more common.

“Police patrols are less likely to walk through a gated community than if you look at lower-income places, for example,” said Merren, which tends to have higher crime rates and heavier police surveillance.

According to the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, police officers arrested 154 people in the island nation of about 80,000 last year for drug-related offenses. Most cannabis-related arrests have been for possession of marijuana. Only three people were arrested on marijuana import charges against Hadid and her traveling companion.