According to Variety.com, Pras Michél has been sentenced to 14 years in prison after he was convicted on charges of alleged conspiracy and illegal foreign lobbying. A judge sentenced Michél on earlier today after he was convicted in April 2023 on 10 counts, including allegedly violating campaign finance laws during Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection bid and illegally lobbying the Donald Trump administration in 2017.
According to Billboard, Michél was handed 14-year sentence, which will be followed by three years of probation. He was facing 22 years behind bars. In a statement to Variety, Michél’s rep Erica Dumas said: “Throughout his career Pras has broken barriers. This is not the end of his story. He appreciates the outpouring of support as he approaches the next chapter.”
In an interview with Variety following his conviction, Michel outlined his plans to appeal the outcome of his case by stating: “I’m going to fight, and I’m going to appeal, but there’s a possibility that I’m going in while I’m fighting. It’s just the reality.”
Michél was initially charged in 2019 and went to trial four years later. The trial lasted for three weeks and included testimony from Leonardo DiCaprio on behalf of the prosecution. Just last month, Michél was ordered to forfeit more than $64 million after he was found guilty of allegedly orchestrating a foreign influence campaign to coax the United States into dropping an investigation into Malaysian financier Jho Low.
Then, the artist attempted to get a retrial after claiming that his former lawyer David Kenner, best known for representing Suge Knight in his 2015 murder case, allegedly used artificial intelligence to come up with closing arguments. In early 2024, Kenner pleaded guilty to misdemeanor criminal contempt and was sentenced to one year of probation over his handling of discovery materials in Michel’s case.
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