Halftime Performer Who Held Protest Flag Is Guilty

A performer who disrupted Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl halftime performance was found guilty Monday of resisting an officer after police said he ran across the field at Caesars Superdome with a Sudanese flag that read "Sudan and Free Gaza," the AP reports. Zul-Qarnain Kwame Nantambu, 41, of New Orleans was among dozens of dancers wearing black outfits as part of the hip-hop artist's Feb. 9, 2025, performance. While Nantambu was authorized to be on the field, he deviated from his assigned role when he held up the flag while standing on the roof of a car used as a prop in the show, according to the Louisiana State Police. He then jumped off the stage and started running. Security and law enforcement personnel ran after him, and he refused to comply with their commands to stop, the state police said.

Nantambu surrendered to authorities after an arrest warrant was obtained, the agency said. He was booked into the Orleans Parish Justice Center on charges of resisting an officer and disturbing the peace by interruption of a lawful assembly. Chief Judge Juana Marine-Lombard found him guilty only of the resisting an officer charge, a misdemeanor. An attorney for Nantambu, Emily Posner, did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment. Nantambu will be sentenced June 1, the judge said. He could face a fine of up to $500 and up to 6 months in prison, according to state law. He has also received a lifetime ban from all NFL events.

In a separate case, Nantambu is listed as the victim of a shooting outside a celebrity boxing event in Miami in May 2025. Former NFL player Antonio Brown is facing an attempted murder charge after authorities say he grabbed a handgun from a security worker at the boxing event and fired two shots at Nantambu. Nantambu told investigators that one of the bullets grazed his neck. Brown has said he was defending himself. A trial date for him was set for January 2027.