R&B singer Faith Evans and her husband were arrested on drug possession charges after police say they found marijuana on the couple during a traffic stop in an Atlanta suburb.
Evans and Todd Russaw, a record executive, were charged with possession of cocaine and marijuana and booked at the Fulton County Jail. Evans was released on $12,000 while Russaw was released on $11,000. A judge scheduled a preliminary hearing for Feb. 11.
The couple’s vehicle was pulled over around 7:50 p.m. Tuesday in Hapeville for an improperly displayed temporary license plate. During the traffic stop, officers found a “minimal amount” of marijuana on both of them as well as cocaine residue on Evans, said Hapeville police spokesman Capt. William Lyons.
Neither were under the influence at the time, Lyons said.
Evans’ attorney, Vincent L. Dimmock, said his client never was in possession of any drugs or narcotics.
“These are absolutely ridiculous charges that authorities have leveled against Faith. She was never in possession of any drugs or narcotics whatsoever,” her attorney, Vincent L. Dimmock, said after the bond hearing Wednesday. “We believe that she will be vindicated completely of these charges when we get into court.”
Evans, 30, is best known for hits such as “You Gets No Love” and “Soon As I Get Home.” She earned a Grammy nomination for her duet “Can’t Believe” with Carl Thomas, recorded on her 2001 album, “Faithfully,” and recently appeared in the film “The Fighting Temptations” with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Beyonce Knowles. Evans also has worked with Whitney Houston and Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, who signed Evans to his Bad Boy label.
Evans is the widow of the late rapper Christopher Wallace, known as The Notorious B.I.G. Wallace was killed in a drive-by shooting in March 1997. Evans is the mother of Wallace’s young son.
Evans, a native of Newark, N.J., recently moved to the Atlanta area.