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WILKES-BARRE —After a significant amount of controversy, a local performance by a New York City rapper who pleaded guilty to a child sex charge has been cancelled, but it remains unclear why.
This comes after the club that was set to host him was shuttered by code enforcement officials on Friday.
Daniel Hernandez, who performs under the name Teka$hi 6ix9ine, was scheduled to perform at the Ali Baba Liquor Lounge on April 21. The show put many locals on edge due to reports that Hernandez had pleaded guilty and was awaiting sentencing on a count of use of a child in a sexual performance stemming from an incident in New York.
On Friday, the Facebook page for the club suddenly announced that the performance by 6ix9ine was cancelled, but the post did not explain why. Attempts to confirm the reason for the cancellation with both the bar and the rapper’s booking agents were unsuccessful.
But with Ali Baba suddenly shut down by code enforcement on Friday — and with Hernandez set to be sentenced days before the scheduled performance — potential reasons for the cancellation abound.
Code enforcement officials condemned the bar on Friday. Dan Kratz, city building code official, did not confirm on Friday the specific reason for the condemnation, but did say it stemmed from renovations made without proper permits that affected exit from the building.
Attempts on Monday to reach city officials for a more specific reason for condemnation were not successful, but another post made by the bar’s Facebook page offered some possible insight.
“Ali Baba Liquor Lounge will be closed this weekend. We WILL be open very soon,” the post made Friday evening read. “City officials shut the venue down until a minor code issue is up to date regarding a wall that was taken down. Even though it’s a minor issue, we decided to keep the venue closed until this issue is fixed.”
The Times Leader reached out to the building’s owner, Nabil Abualburak. He said he would not comment on the closure until after he was able to speak with Mayor Tony George. Abualburak claims his phone calls to the mayor have gone unanswered.
The Times Leader’s own calls to Mayor George were also not returned on Monday, leaving the fate of the bar currently unclear, save for of the bar’s posts saying it will reopen soon.
“We will keep everyone posted … stand by,” the post made Friday night continued.
