Pras Michel
Pras Michel “betrayed the USA for money” to help a businessman – who “just wanted a photo” with Barack Obama.
“Ready or not, here I come…” para a prisão. Prakazrel “Pras” Michel, one of the group members The Fugees, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
O rapper “betrayed his country for money”the prosecutors summarize: illegally channeled millions of dollars into foreign contributions to Barack Obama’s re-election campaignem 2012.
According to the Department of Justice, the musician accepted 120 million dollars (just over 100 million euros) Low Taek JhoMalaysian businessman who wanted to have political influence in the USA.
Prosecutors said Michel “Lied shamelessly and relentlessly to move forward with their actions” and Tried to deceive the White House, high-level politicians and the FBI for nearly a decadecite to .
Later, in 2018 and with Donald Trump in the White House, he is accused of having pressed the Presidency and the Department of Justice so that archive investigations into embezzlement of funds against the Malaysian businessman.
Overall, Pras was condemned for 10 crimes (in 2023) and, last month, he was sentenced to a fine of around 65 million dollars (almost 50 million euros) for his role in the scheme.
And the prosecutors even wanted punishment for life imprisonment. To “reflect the breadth and depth of Pras Michel’s crimes, his indifference to the risks to his country and the magnitude of his greed”.
The rapper’s lawyer, Peter Zeidenberg, thinks 14 years is “completely disproportionate to the crime”; and promised to appeal.
However, the businessperson Low Taek Jho is running away from justice – but continues to guarantee that he is innocent. Lawyers guarantee that Low never wanted to achieve any political objective; I just wanted to take a picture with Barack Obama.
Pras Michel was one of the founding members of The Fugees, one of the most successful musical groups of the 1990s, which also included his childhood friends Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean.
In August last year, there was supposed to be a return of The Fugees – but the US tour was discreetly cancelled, just three days before the first concert. There was no official reason; Lauryn Hill spoke of “sensational headlines” and few tickets sold.
Two months later, in October 2024, Pras sued Lauryn Hill for breach of contract and fraud, accusing her of mismanaging the tour budget in a “veiled and cunning attempt to make a large profit for herself.”
