Chuck D has never been afraid to share his opinions, and he’s voiced a strong one on the recent guilty verdict against Pras Michel of The Fugees.
Taking to Twitter on Thursday (April 27), the Public Enemy MC blasted what he called a “prop-agenda machine” that was biased against the rapper seemingly from the start.
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“Pras was a valedictorian in HighSchool or in the final runnings,” he wrote. “They NEVER mention THAT. Instead USA propAgenda machine ALWAYS promotes this backwoods Jed ass Clampett tale of Hood gangstaS, which NEVER been a threat ANYWHERE other than Blackfolk. Wrong is wrong but this SMELLS.”
Chuck D also shared a photo of the embattled rapper on the cover of Bloomberg Businessweek, with the tagline “The U.S. vs. The Fugee: How Pras Michel got mixed up in a global financial scandal that could cost him his freedom.”
Later on, the “Fight the Power” rapper followed up his tweet with a further explanation that “the narrative is calling him everything in the book and never mentioning it. That’s it. But the deeper you go into any of this Russell you discover a fraternity ALL pssing in the same urinal holding each others johnson.”
With that, Chuck D was seemingly implying that Pras was the victim of a larger machination designed to make him a scapegoat, rather than holding the true political cabal responsible.
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On Wednesday (April 26), Pras was found guilty on 10 counts, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S., witness tampering, and acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
“We are extremely disappointed in that result but are very, very confident in the ultimate outcome of this case,” Pras’ attorney, David Kenner, told reporters. “If we do move to a sentencing hearing I remain very confident we will certainly appeal this case. This is not over.”
A sentencing date has yet to be set.
Pras was accused of a failed conspiracy to help Malaysian businessman Jho Low and the Chinese government gain access to U.S. officials, including Barack Obama and Donald Trump. In a rare and bold move, he opted to take the stand in his trial last week and testified that he served as an unofficial FBI informant regarding China’s efforts to extradite Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui.
Though he denied he worked with China on the Wengui matter, Pras said he voluntarily met with FBI agents on multiple occasions to discuss him and three Americans being held hostage in China.
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“I took it upon myself to report because I thought the FBI should know,” he said.
Elsewhere in his testimony, Pras told jurors he served as a “celebrity surrogate” for Low, and that Low paid him $20million to help him get a photo with Obama in 2012.
“They didn’t want the optics at that time,” Pras said. “At that point, Jho Low was a party guy — Vegas, champagne, parties with Paris Hilton. The campaign just didn’t want that.”
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Pras insisted he never made any political donations on Low’s behalf, however, saying he used his own money and always ran things by his lawyers and accountants to ensure everything he did was on the level.
