US Rapper, Fetty Wap Sentenced To Six Years Behind Bars In New York Drug Case
LAGOS MAY 24TH (NEWSRANGERS)-Rapper Fetty Wap apologized to his family, friends — and the addicts he sold drugs to — as he was sentenced to six years in prison Wednesday for his part in a bi-coastal narcotics ring.
The hip hop star — whose real name is Willie Junior Maxwell II — was accused of driving to Long Island about six times in the spring of 2020 and buying kilograms of cocaine then selling it in New York and New Jersey.
The Paterson, NJ native — who was one of five people charged in the case — personally dealt 25 kilograms of the drug in the Garden State, federal prosecutors said.
“I always aimed to lead,” he told the judge at his sentencing in Long Island federal court. “I ended up hurting the community, hurting the people who look up to me, hurting my family, hurting my children, hurting myself.”
The 31-year-old “Trap Queen” rapper pleaded guilty in August to one count of conspiracy to possess and distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine and faced a minimum of five years and a maximum of 40 years behind bars for the crime.
His attorneys had requested that he get the minimum — a bid Central Islip federal Judge Joanna Seybert denied because Maxwell violated his bail conditions last year by threatening a rival with a gun in a FaceTime call.
“There is a message to be sent,” Seybert said. “Without a doubt, you did a lot of dumb things when you got out, things that are arguably criminal.”
Prior to sentencing, Maxwell apologized to the court as some 20 friends and family members — including music executive Russell Simmons — looked on.
Fetty Wap was sentenced to six years in prison in a drug case.Getty Images
“I only wanted to do right by my family and loved ones,” he told the judge. “In doing so, I never asked myself — is it all the way right?”
The Billboard-charting artist said he sold the drugs in a desperate bid to stay afloat financially when the pandemic put him in the red.
His lawyer Elizabeth Macedonio said Maxwell was motivated to start dealing so that he could continue to provide for his family and friends — including his eight children — after his concert revenues dried up during the lockdowns.
Roughly 20 friends and family — including music producer Russell Simmons — were present when the rapper apologized in court.Dennis A. Clark
“All these people were relying on a still young man with no money coming in,” Macedonio told the judge. “There were bills to be paid, but the money was running out.”
The lawyer said Maxwell “turned to selling drugs” — but didn’t do it for personal gain or fun and only did it for a few months.
“There were a lot of mouths to feed. The financial obligations were swallowing him up,” she said. “He got in and got out. His family was taken care of and that was the end of it.”
His family and friends came to court for the sentencing where he faced between five and 40 years behind bars.Dennis A. Clark
But federal prosecutor Christopher Caffarone noted that many people lost their jobs during the pandemic — but not all of them turned to slinging drugs.
“The people who lost their jobs — know what they didn’t do?” Caffarone said rhetorically. “They didn’t drive to New Jersey, pick up 25 kilograms of cocaine, drive to Long Island and sell it on the streets.”
Last week, prosecutors recommended that Maxwell — who has been locked up since August — receive between seven years and three months to nine years behind bars claiming he was a “large-scale narcotics trafficker” who “continues to use his fame, sizable platform and influence to glamorize the drug trade.”
The feds cited as an example his breakout hit, “Trap Queen” which Maxwell wrote about an ex-girlfriend who helped him peddle drugs in Paterson.
The rapper pleaded guilty in August to one count of conspiracy in the bi-coastal drug case.Suffolk County District Attorney / MEGA
Macedonia Wednesday said prosecutors were unfairly using Maxwell’s song against him, referencing other famous songs about drugs or crimes — including Jimi Hendrix’ “Purple Haze,” The Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” and Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff.”
“This is music, it’s art,” the judge said. “It’s what Mr. Maxwell does for a living. It doesn’t make any of the songs true.”
Caffarone fired back: “I know Bob Marley didn’t shoot the sheriff … The defendant actually did sell drugs. He did actually sell cocaine.”
Maxwell was arrested on Oct. 29, 2021 and had been free on $500,000 bond until he allegedly violated the conditions of his release during the Dec. 11, 2021 FaceTime call.
Maxwell and the others allegedly distributed over 100 kilograms of cocaine, heroin, fentanyl and crack cocaine from June 2019 through June 2020.
The group got West Coast drugs shipped to them through the mail or had drivers transport them in cars with hidden compartments, prosecutors alleged.
The hip-hop star allegedly made six trips in the spring of 2020 to Long Island, where he bought drugs and then resold them in NJ and NY, prosecutors say.Suffolk County District Attorney / MEGA
Anthony Leonardi, 49, Robert Leonardi, 28, Brian Sullivan, 27, and Kavaughn Wiggins, 28, facilitated getting the drugs across the country to be processed, stored and resold, prosecutors claimed.
Maxwell redistributed the drugs and New Jersey Correction Officer Anthony Cyntje, 25, transported them from Long Island to New Jersey, the feds alleged.
In March, Cyntje was also sentenced to six years in prison.
The four remaining co-defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.
New York Post
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