For Bieber, marijuana and monkey troubles steal the spotlight

By STEPHANIE GRIMES LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

12 years ago

Canadian singer Justin Bieber performs on stage during his concert in Telenor Arena in Oslo in April.

In this May 31, 2013 file photo Canadian singer Justin Bieber’s former pet the capuchin monkey named Mally stretches out its tongue in its quarantine room at the new home in an animal park near Hodenhagen, northern Germany. German authorities have posted a public notice urging Justin Bieber to get in touch with them about an unpaid bill for his former pet monkey Mally.

DETROIT — Pop sensation Justin Bieber’s troubles apparently know no borders.

Marijuana was found Sunday night on the 19-year-old’s tour bus as it crossed the U.S.-Canada border into Detroit via the Ambassador Bridge, according to border authorities.

The singer was not on the bus at the time, Kenneth Hammond, chief officer and public affairs liaison for U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Detroit, told the Detroit Free Press.

Hammond told the Free Press that police dogs alerted authorities to a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia during a secondary inspection. The driver was issued a civil penalty in the case.

Meanwhile, German officials are still trying to get Bieber to own up to an unpaid bill for his former pet monkey, Mally. The monkey was turned over to German officials in March after Bieber could not produce vaccination and import papers when he arrived for a European tour. The German government took ownership of Mally in May after Bieber failed to claim the monkey.

The Canadian singer has one week to pay 1,130 euros ($1,500) for Mally’s care.

Otherwise, customs officials “have ways of making him pay,” Franz Boehmer, a spokesman for the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, told the Associated Press.

Back on this side of the Atlantic, Bieber was criticized recently for allegedly spitting on fans over a balcony in Toronto. Pictures surfaced on TMZ of the singer spitting, but did not show the area below the balcony. A representative told the New York Daily News there were no fans below.

It’s been an eventful summer for Bieber, even without the marijuana and monkey trouble:

In late June, Bieber made nationwide headlines for his Vegas escapades after botching a deal with Las Vegas Indoor Skydiving. Bieber had agreed to post on Instagram a photo of himself midflight, according to the company, in exchange for a free pass. When he failed to live up to his end of the deal, the company banned him for life.
Early in July, Bieber spent some quality time with the Stanley Cup in the locker room of the NHL champion Chicago Blackhawks. The Internet raged after noticing Bieber was standing on the Blackhawks’ logo in a picture tweeted out by the Blackhawks’ marketing team.
Also in July, TMZ acquired video of Bieber urinating in a restaurant mop bucket on his way out of a New York City nightclub. On his way out of the restaurant, Bieber sprays a photo of former Pres. Bill Clinton with cleaning solution, dropping the f-bomb in reference to Clinton.
Bieber’s car can’t even avoid trouble. The rapper Lil Twist was arrested earlier this month for investigation of driving under the influence after he was pulled over in Bieber’s 2012 Fisker. Police said the rapper was driving at least 60 mph in a 30-mph zone.

The singer’s antics have led celebrities to give advice to the singer through the press. Actress Olivia Wilde suggested Bieber keep his shirt on in public, while singer Miley Cyrus advised him to keep his urine where it belongs.

Bieber apologized to Pres. Clinton after the restaurant fiasco and offered to help the Clinton Foundation, and has also apologized to Blackhawks fans. He has thus far avoided commenting about the marijuana found on his tour bus.

Contact Stephanie Grimes at sgrimes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @steph_grimes on Twitter.