A US court sentenced rapper Prakazrel “Pras” Michel to 14 years in prison for involvement in a billion-dollar Malaysian scam that funnelled money into American politics, his lawyer confirmed Friday.
In 2023, the 53-year-old founding member of the 1990s hit trio the Fugees was convicted of money laundering and campaign finance violations in a global foreign influence scandal led by Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho.
The scheme funnelled millions of dollars into former US president Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign.
A jury had found Michel guilty on 10 criminal counts following a trial that included Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio as a witness.
In addition, Michel was found guilty of conspiracy, forgery, and acting as an undisclosed agent of a foreign government.
He was also tried for illegal lobbying on behalf of China in 2017, during the first Trump administration. He intended to request the extradition to Beijing of entrepreneur Guo Wengui, accused of defrauding thousands of investors to the sum of over $1 billion dollars.
Michel’s attorney, Peter Zeidenberg, said his client would appeal and that the sentence was lopsided.
“It is true that Mr. Michel was sentenced to 168 months,” Zeidenberg told AFP following Thursday’s sentencing.