Ready or not / you can’t hide / gonna fiiind you
Fugees rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michel has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for illegally funneling millions of dollars in foreign cash to former President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign.
The Brooklyn-born Grammy winner — who co-founded the hip hop group with singers Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean — stayed mum as U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly handed down the hefty sentence Thursday in Washington, DC.
Prakazrel “Pras” Michel arrives at his trial at the US District Court in Washington, DC, on March 30, 2023. REUTERSMichel, 52, also received three years of probation and was ordered last month to forfeit $64 million linked to the federal crimes.
The “Ready or Not” rapper was found guilty in April 2023 of 10 counts of conspiracy and acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government — after a high-profile trial that included testimony from actor Leonardo
DiCaprio and former Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Michel ran an international scheme in which he took $120 million from Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, who wanted to gain political influence in the United States, the Justice Department said.
The Fugees perform at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif., on Nov. 4, 2023. Getty Images
President Barack Obama speaks during a campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin, on Nov. 5, 2012. Getty ImagesThe rapper distributed some of that cash to roughly 20 straw donors, who then gave it to the Obama campaign.
Prosecutors had asked for a life sentence, saying Michel “betrayed his country for money” and “lied unapologetically and unrelentingly to carry out his schemes.”
“After Michel was caught, he tampered with witnesses and then perjured himself at trial,” the Justice Department said in court documents.
“His sentence should reflect the breadth and depth of his crimes, his indifference to the risks to his country, and the magnitude of his greed,” the prosecutors said.
Pras Michel performs with the Fugees in Los Angeles, on Nov. 4, 2023. Getty Images
Michel, a Brooklyn native whose parents immigrated to the US from Haiti, was a founding member of the Fugees along with childhood friends Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean. APMichel’s lawyer, Peter Zeidenberg, however, called the requested life sentence “absurdly high” and recommended three years behind bars.
Michel’s legal team plans to appeal his conviction and sentence, Zeidenberg said.
“Throughout his career Pras has broken barriers,” his spokesperson, Erica Dumas, told Rolling Stone. “This is not the end of his story. He appreciates the outpouring of support as he approaches the next chapter.”
With Post wires
