American rapper Nicki Minaj's father has been killed in a hit-and-run near New York City. Robert Maraj, 64, was walking on Roslyn Road around 6 P.M. in Mineola, Long Island on Friday evening when he got struck by a vehicle heading north, according to a statement released by the Nassau County Police Department.
The driver fled the scene and Maraj, 64, was transported to a hospital in critical condition, authorities said. Maraj, a resident of Mineola, was pronounced dead after his condition was examined by a hospital doctor on Saturday. Meanwhile, Nassau County Police Department said that its Homicide Squad is currently investigating the case to nab the culprit. The news of Nicki Minaj's father's death has been confirmed by a representative. However, more details are yet to be revealed.
Earlier, in an interview in 2015, Minaj spoke about her father at length. The rapper, who moved to the United States from Trinidad to join her parents, had said her father was 'abusive.' She had said that she always heard Maraj yelling and cursing, which made her feel that it was the way to interact with people as that's how she saw her father interacting as a child. She also recalled an incident when her father tried to burn down her house. "I was disappointed in my father," Minaj said further adding that she was very afraid that something would happen to her mother. She said that she even had nightmares.
Nicki Minaj's father was a severe drug addict with a long history of violence. Minaj, as a child, wanted to be rich as she thought that would cure everything and also allow her to take care of her mother so that they can leave her father. In a 2010 interview with The Rolling Stone, Minaj said that was what drove her career. Meanwhile, late Robert Maraj leaves behind his wife Carol Maraj with whom he has three children including Nicki Minaj, Ming Maraj, Jelani Maraj.
Nicki Minaj Top 10 Hit Songs
Minaj is yet to react to her father's death on social media where she has a whopping 129 million followers as of January 15, 2021. While Minaj's relationship with Robert Maraj wasn't non-toxic and it is unclear what type of relationship the singer had with her father while she grew up. Minaj and her father were photographed together by paparazzi in recent years.
