New Orleans, Louisiana - Rapper Lil Wayne is in mourning after the police officer who saved his life as a kid passed away over the weekend.

According to The New Orleans Advocate, retired officer Robert Hoobler, known to Wayne as Uncle Bob, was found dead in his New Orleans home on Saturday. He had been battling lingering health issues from a car accident and diabetes for several years.

"Everything happens for a reason," Lil Wayne wrote in an Instagram tribute. "I was dying when I met u at this very spot. U refused to let me die."

"Everything that doesn’t happen, doesn’t happen for a reason. That reason being you and faith," the star added.

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"RIP uncle Bob. Aunt Kathie been waiting for u. I’ll love & miss u both and live for us all."

In November 1994, when the rapper was only 12, he shot himself in the chest with a 9 mm in an attempted suicide, which he recounted in harrowing detail on Emmanuel Acho's Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man.

Hoobler arrived at the scene, and despite being off duty, he carried the bleeding teenager to his cruiser and rushed him to the hospital after finding out that no ambulance was available.

The two have kept in touch over the years, even after Wayne grew up to become one of the biggest rappers in the game.

If you or someone you know need help, please contact the 24-hour National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for free and confidential support.