Rapper DMX held after car crash

DMX has been one of rap's biggest stars since the late 1990s

US rapper and actor DMX was arrested on suspicion of driving with a suspended licence after a minor crash involving a police car in New York on Friday.

DMX, 34, real name Earl Simmons, was driving a car that hit the back of another vehicle, which in turn hit the rear of a police cruiser, police said.

Two officers were treated for minor injuries after the accident on the Major Deegan Expressway in the Bronx.

The New York Times reported there was heavy traffic which was moving slowly.

He was released after being charged. The incident comes four months after DMX was arrested on three driving charges including speeding.

And that came a week after he pleaded guilty to driving while on drugs following an incident last June when he and another man smashed into a gate at New York's Kennedy Airport.

In 2001, he was ordered to serve a 15-day jail sentence for driving without a licence.

DMX has been one of rap's biggest stars since the late 1990s and has recently moved into acting, with roles in films Romeo Must Die, Exit Wounds and Cradle 2 the Grave.