<p>Grammy-winning artist Prakazrel “Pras” Michel, former member of the 1990s hip-hop trio the Fugees, was found guilty Wednesday in a federal court on 10 criminal counts related to an international conspiracy to help China influence the U.S. government.</p>
<p>Michel, 50, was convicted of conspiracy, concealment of material facts, making false entries in records, witness tampering, and serving as an unregistered agent of a foreign power in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, according to the Department of Justice. He pleaded not guilty to all changes.</p>
<p>“As proven at trial, the defendant engaged in an extensive conspiracy to use millions of dollars in foreign funds to engage in illegal back-channel lobbying and make unlawful campaign contributions,” Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., said in a <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/us-entertainer-convicted-engaging-foreign-influence-campaign" target="_blank" rel="noopener">news release</a>.</p>
<p>Michel, who rose to fame in the early 1990s upon forming the East Coast hip-hop trio with Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean, played a central role in a wide-ranging conspiracy to improperly influence top government officials, including the Obama and Trump administrations, authorities said.</p>
<p>Prosecutor Sean Mulryne told the jury in closing arguments that the rapper was “at the center of the conspiracy.”</p>
<p>&#8220;He’s the core; he’s the linchpin,” Mulryne said, according to the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/pras-michel-convicted-of-involvement-in-foreign-influence-scheme-linked-to-1mdb-d27f49eb">Wall Street Journal</a>.</p>
<p>Authorities said Michel received more than $100 million from Malaysian financier Jho Low, who also faces charges separately for allegedly embezzling billions from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund, between 2009 and 2014.</p>
<p>Court documents and trial evidence detail that Low and Michel conspired to lobby President Trump and the Justice Department to drop the 1MDB embezzlement investigation and extradite a Chinese national on behalf of Beijing. CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/26/politics/pras-michel-trial-verdict/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> the rapper denied Low gave him the money, claiming it was an investment for a media business. Authorities also accused Michel and Low of lobbying the Trump administration on behalf of Beijing to extradite a Chinese dissident living in America.</p>
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<p>During the Obama administration, authorities said Michel and Low funneled millions of dollars into roughly 20 straw donors for President Obama’s re-election campaign in 2012. According to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/former-fugees-member-pras-michel-convicted-10-felony-counts-rcna81670" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NBC</a>, Michel told trial jurors last week that he accepted approximately $20 million from Low, who hoped to get a picture with Obama, though he claimed he did not intend for the money to be used as foreign campaign contributions or his services.</p>
<p>Michel also admitted to giving approximately $800,000 in donation money to friends intended for exclusive access to Obama fundraisers in Miami and Washington D.C., roughly priced at $40,000 per seat. Still, he considered the funds “free money” and his to spend.</p>
<p>Michel also claimed he was never told to register as a foreign agent.</p>
<p>Attorney David Kenner, who represented Michel, told reporters the rapper plans to appeal his conviction after sentencing.</p>
<p>“We are extremely disappointed in the results and are very, very confident in the ultimate outcome of this case,” Kenner told reporters.“This is not over. I remain very, very confident that we will ultimately prevail in this matter.”</p>
<p>Michel faces up to 20 years in prison.</p>
<p>Authorities have yet to set a sentencing date.</p>

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Ex-Fugees Rapper ‘Pras’ Found Guilty On Charges Involving International Conspiracy Between China And U.S. Gov

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Ex-Fugees Rapper ‘Pras’ Found Guilty On Charges Involving International Conspiracy Between China And U.S. Gov