Meek Mill’s controversial criminal case has become a major hindrance for him to make a living. Case in point: the Philadelphia rapper reportedly had to miss out on a $450,000 paycheck for a performance in Abu Dhabi because Judge Genece Brinkley wouldn’t approve him to travel abroad.

In a Monday (May 6) interview with ESPN’s Outside the Lines, Philadelphia 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin detailed Meek's attempt to travel while on probation. For the record, the Philly rapper has been on probation stemming from decade-long criminal case.

"Meek had an opportunity to go to Dubai a few months ago for a concert, for a day, he was gonna be paid $450,000," Rubin explained. "The judge approved him to travel after the concert after it [had already happened]. In other words, his time to travel there got approved after the day of doing the concert. So [Meek] didn't get to make that $450,000, which stimulates so many people around him. So everything he needs to do is controlled by his judge."

"[Meek is] somebody who should be free, but people think he's free but he's not free today," added Rubin, who is the co-chair of Reform Alliance, a criminal justice reform organization that he, Meek and others formed back in January.

Last month, Rubin called out Judge Brinkley for blocking Meek's entry into to Toronto in order to attend the NBA playoff game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Toronto Raptors.

"Judge Genece Brinkley—I know you have a vendetta against Meek Mill and are obsessed with trying to control every aspect of his life, but did you really NOT approve him to go to rep the Sixers in Toronto for the game? Do you also hate PHILLY?" he vented in an Instagram post.

Meanwhile, Meek's odyssey into criminal and probation reform is the subject of a new Amazon six-part docuseries called Free Meek. The series, which is co-produced by Jay-Z, is set to premiere later this year.

XXL reached out to Meek Mill's reps for a comment but didn't get a response back at press time.

You can watch Michael Rubin speak about Meek Mill's probation case in the video below.

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