Brooklyn rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine, otherwise known as Daniel Hernandez, has avoided jail and been ordered to undertake 1000 hours of community service in relation to a 2015 child sex offence.
The charge of using a child in a sexual performance stemmed from a February 2015 incident in which Hernandez had sexual contact with a 13-year-old girl, and distributed videos of it online.
Has was initially given two years’ good behaviour as part of a youthful offender plea deal, after which he was to be granted three years’ probation if he did not commit any further crimes.
He ended up having several more run-ins with the law in the years that followed, including an arrest for allegedly choking a teenager in Houston in January of 2018.
He was later taken into custody in Brooklyn for driving with an expired license, and attacked a police officer following that arrest.
In light of these further offences, prosecutors at Friday’s hearing pushed for him to spend one to three years in state prison and register as a sex offender.
Despite this, the sentence handed down ended up being significantly lighter, and he will avoid both prison time and being placed on the sex offender registry.
Manhattan Judge Felicia A Mennin acknowledged that he “technically” violated his previous plea agreement with his other offences, but that she would not be bound by this in her sentencing.
Speaking in his own defence, Tekashi 6ix9ine highlighted recent good deeds he has done, including providing meals to homeless people in Chicago, and meeting a young fan with cancer.
In addition to the 1000 hours community service, he “must refrain from gang affiliation and the posting or reposting online sexually explicit or violent images of women or children.”
