South Florida Recording Artist Faces Criminal Charges for Drug Possession
In 2025 in South Florida, possession of 20 grams of cannabis seems like the least of anyone’s concerns. Possession of that quantity is legal in Florida’s most populous counties under many circumstances. Likewise, police might stop you if you drive too fast, but you are much less likely to get a ticket for driving too slowly. Likewise, if you are rich or famous, it is easier to get away with breaking the law than it is if you are a nobody. Based on this, all the unlucky stars seem to have aligned for Jesus Manuel Nieves Cortes, a recording artist better known by his stage name Jhayco. A traffic stop for a minor driving mistake led to Jhayco getting criminal charges for possession of cannabis and cocaine. Even though the quantity of drugs that police found in his possession was small, he could face jail time if convicted. If you are facing criminal charges for drug possession after a traffic stop, contact a Florida drug offenses attorney.
It Started With a Reverse Speeding Ticket
Jhayco has had a whirlwind rise to stardom as a reggaeton artist, including several collaborations with Bad Bunny, and he seems to have taken to the fast-paced lifestyle of Miami, but things were moving rather more slowly in his life when he got arrested on suspicion of drug possession, among other charges. In the dog days of the summer of 2025, Nieves Cortes was driving a red Corvette on Southwest 8th Street in Miami-Dade County. According to witnesses who saw him at about 3:00 a.m., it took his car a long time to travel the length of the road. At first, he drove at about five miles per hour. Then his car stopped in the road for at least five minutes. It was still stopped when police arrived.
An officer approached Jhayco’s car to ask why he was stopped in the road, and he noticed an odor of cannabis in the car. This prompted him to search the car, at which point he found two small bags of cannabis and one small bag with a drug powder. The forensics lab eventually determined that the cannabis weighed about 14 grams and that the powder was cocaine. Prosecutors also allege that Nieves Cortes was driving without a license.
Nieves Cortes was booked into jail at about 4:24 in the morning, according to the Miami New Times website. He posted his bail in the amount of $3,000 and was released at 10:30. No additional information is available about his case, such as whether he entered a plea and what criminal penalties, if any, he faced.
Contact FL Drug Defense Group About Drug Cases
A Central Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges for drug possession after a minor mistake of yours happened to attract the attention of traffic cops, who then searched your vehicle and found drugs. Contact FL Drug Defense Group in Orlando, Florida to discuss your case.
Sources:
miaminewtimes.com/music/puerto-rican-rapper-jhayco-arrested-on-drug-charges-in-miami-23798490/
nbcmiami.com/news/local/jhayco-arrested-cocaine-possession-in-miami-dade-jail/3676147/
