Federal prosecutors described to a Washington, DC, jury on Thursday how a former Fugees rapper allegedly got caught up in three schemes to illegally influence two presidential administrations on behalf of a foreign businessman.
The trial against Pras Michel, the Grammy-winning artist, began in earnest on Thursday with opening statements. Prosecutor Nicole Lockhart told the jury of six men and nine women how Michel allegedly took more than $100 million from Malaysian billionaire Jho Low and used that money to bolster Low’s influence in the United States.
Michel has pleaded not guilty to charges including conspiracy, witness tampering and failing to register as an agent of China. Defense lawyers opted to defer their opening statements until later in the trial.
“This case is one full of political intrigue, back-room dealings… burner phones and lies,” Lockhart told jurors.
Low, who also was indicted, remains at large and is believed to be in China.
The plot began in 2012, Lockhart said, when “Low was willing to spend lots of money to get that influence” in Washington, DC, and amongst the rich and famous. Michel, Lockhart said, “had a successful music album in the 90s, but in 2012 was looking for new ways to get paid.”
That is why Michel and Low struck a deal, she said, to surreptitiously donate Low’s money to groups backing then-President Barack Obama. Lockhart said that Michel “duped the Obama campaign” by using a series of straw donors to make the donations – almost $2 million – because the total exceeded what one person is allowed to donate to a campaign. As a result, Lockhart added, Low’s father met with Obama during a campaign event.
In 2017, Lockhart said, Low was facing several investigations in the United States over allegations that he had embezzled billions of dollars from a Malaysia’s sovereign…
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