Pras Michel of the Fugees was sentenced to 14 years in prison Thursday for laundering money to support Barack Obama‘s 2012 reelection campaign, The Associated Press reports.
Justice Department prosecutors had sought a life sentence for Michel while defense attorney Peter Zeidenberg had recommended three years, according to AP. Zeindenberg said a life sentence, which is typically for drug cartel leaders and terrorists, was too high of a punishment for Michel and that the 14-year sentence is “completely disproportionate to the offense.”
He added that Michel will appeal his sentence, as well as his conviction.
Michel had been convicted of 10 counts in April 2023, including money laundering, acting as an unregistered foreign agent and conspiracy for laundering over $120 million that financier Jho Low stole from Malaysia’s state-owned investment fund, 1MDB, to donate to Obama’s campaign. He was also accused of bribing Donald Trump‘s administration to drop an investigation into Low’s embezzlement.
Michel sought a new trial, but his request was rejected in 2024. The judge said errors that occurred during the trial, including some from his defense attorney’s use of an AI program, weren’t enough to demonstrate a serious miscarriage of justice.
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