Coolio charged after 'gun found in bag at Los Angeles airport'

US rapper Coolio has been charged after a handgun was allegedly found in his rucksack at Los Angeles international airport.

The 53-year-old could be jailed for up to three years if convicted after the weapon was apparently discovered while his bags were being X-rayed in September.

Coolio, whose real name is Artis Leon Ivey, faces one count of possession of a firearm by a felon with two priors.

He was scheduled to appear in court in LA on Thursday, but reportedly did not turn up.

His lawyer told the judge his client had a performance in St Louis and could not get back in time, according to TMZ.

The rapper, who is probably most famous for his 1995 track Gangsta's Paradise, now has to appear at court on 26 October, it added.

TMZ claimed the gun had been loaded when he was detained in September.

In 2001, he was convicted of carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle and in 2009 he was convicted of possessing cocaine.