Fetty Wap was sentenced to six years in prison on Wednesday for operating a drug trafficking scheme.
The rapper, whose legal name is Willie Junior Maxwell II, pleaded guilty in August 2022 to one count of conspiracy to possess and distribute 500g or more of cocaine, per Rolling Stone.
According to a media release from the United States Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York, Maxwell and five co-dependents were initially arrested and charged in October 2021 with conspiracy to distribute more than 100kg of cocaine, heroin, fentanyl and crack cocaine across Long Island and New Jersey from June 2019 through June 2020.
“The defendants obtained the narcotics on the west coast and used the United States Postal Service and drivers with hidden vehicle compartments to transport the controlled substances across the country to Suffolk County, where they were stored,” the media release said.
“The drugs were then distributed to dealers, who sold them on Long Island and in New Jersey.”
As reported by CNN, Maxwell was subsequently released on US$500,000 (AU$764,470) bail, but re-entered custody in August 2022 after prosecutors alleged he violated the terms of his pre-trial release by holding up a gun and threatening to kill someone during a FaceTime call in 2021.
Maxwell apologised during Wednesday’s sentencing hearing before US District Court Judge Joanna Seybert.
“I hurt my community, people who look up to me, my family and myself,” he said, per the Guardian.
“I am truly sorry for any pain I caused.”
Rolling Stone reported that prosecution argued for a sentence of seven to nine years, claiming that Maxwell’s music glamorised the drug trade.
But the “Trap Queen” rapper’s lawyer, Elizabeth Macedonio, pushed for a lesser sentence, arguing that Maxwell was motivated by a desire to provide for his family after touring dried up ‘cos of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In March this year, Maxwell’s co-defendant, Anthony Cyntje, was sentenced to six years in prison for his role in the drug trafficking scheme. The rapper’s remaining four co-defendants have pleaded guilty and await sentencing.
