Pras and his legal team are currently preparing their appeal over his 14-year prison sentence for money laundering, witness tampering, and other charges. In the meantime, he will have to wait for an update on that from behind bars, according to Rolling Stone.
The outlet reports that on Thursday (April 30), the Fugees rapper turned himself in at the Federal Correctional Institution in Safford, Arizona to begin his sentence. His spokesperson, Erica Dumas, reportedly provided a statement about the matter.
"Today is a painful day for Pras, for his family, and for everyone who believes in a fair system of justice," Dumas reportedly stated. "Pras honors the legal process as he reports to begin his sentence. The FARA-related charges that led to his conviction are being vigorously contested on appeal, and his legal team believes the record will show that his rights were violated and the truth was obscured. This chapter is difficult but it is not his final one."
"He has to fight it on the inside," Dumas reportedly told Rolling Stone. "His appeal is in the very beginning stages. As you can imagine, it’s a very complicated case with lots of files."
Dumas also reportedly said Pras has spent a lot of time with family before the sentence. "He doesn’t really go out," the spokesperson reportedly stated. "He’s vegan, he doesn’t drink, and he doesn’t smoke."
The spokesperson reportedly revealed his last outing was at the Kanye West concert on April 3 in Los Angeles. There, Fugees alum Lauryn Hill performed as a guest. Dumas reportedly claimed Pras hung out with Dave Chappelle and Erykah Badu and sang along to one of Hill's songs. This is notable because of Pras' previous legal conflicts with Lauryn Hill.
What Did Pras Do?
A court convicted Pras in 2023 on charges of money laundering, illegal lobbying, campaign finance violations, concealment of material facts, witness tampering, bank fraud, Foreign Agents Registration Act violations, and acting as an unregistered agent of China. Authorities accused him of funneling money stolen by Malaysian businessman Jho Low from a Malaysian state fund as illegal contributions to Barack Obama's 2012 presidential reelection campaign in the United States in 2012. They also accused the artist of using that money to lobby the Donald Trump administration to stop investigating Low.
