Chronicle
Spy for a Malaysian financier, rapper Pras Michel of the Fugees risks 20 years in prison
Found guilty of ten offences including espionage, money laundering and bank fraud. In the crosshairs the unclear relations with the Malaysian financier Low, introduced by rappers in the environments that count in exchange for money
27/04/2023
Haitian rapper Pras Michel, 50, a hip hop icon and member of the American trio Fugees, was found guilty of ten crimes including spying for a foreign country, money laundering and bank fraud. The verdict was issued by the federal district court in Washington Dc. Pras faces twenty years in prison. The ruling is expected in the coming weeks. According to the indictment, the rapper had facilitated the meeting between a Malaysian financier, Jho Low, suspected of having disappeared 4.5 billion dollars from his country's sovereign wealth funds, and senior officials of the American administration, including former presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump.
The rapper and record producer had brought Low and Obama together. To take a picture with the president, the financier allegedly gave the rapper twenty million dollars. Once Trump arrived, Pras had introduced the financier with the aim of convincing the administration, in exchange for a hundred million dollars, to drop the accusations against the Malaysian. During these years, Low had met a number of Hollywood stars and financed the film "The Wolf of Wall Street", starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Pras declined to comment on leaving the courthouse, while his lawyer, David Keller, said he was "extremely disappointed." "But our battle - he added - does not end here". The financier, indicted with the rapper, is nowhere to be found. According to investigators, he is hiding in China.