Fetty Wap pleads guilty to federal drug charge, faces at least 5-year sentence
ByKelli Dugan, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
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Fetty Wap pleads guilty to federal drug charge, faces minimum of 5 years Prosecutors alleged that the rapper participated in “a multimillion-dollar bicoastal drug distribution organization.” (NCD)
ByKelli Dugan, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
LONG ISLAND, N.Y. — Rapper Fetty Wap pleaded guilty Monday to a federal drug charge carrying a minimum five-year prison sentence.
Prosecutors alleged that the rapper, whose legal name is Willie Junior Maxwell II, participated in “a multimillion-dollar bicoastal drug distribution organization” responsible for shipping more than 100 kilos of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine from California to New York for distribution, according to Billboard.
Maxwell, 31, entered his plea in the Eastern District of New York’s Long Island courthouse two weeks after U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven Locke revoked the rapper’s $500,000 bond following his Aug. 8 arrest on suspicion of calling someone on FaceTime and threatening to kill them while brandishing a weapon, The Washington Post reported.
The “Trap Queen” performer was one of six people arrested on the conspiratorial drug charges in October, according to the newspaper.
Sentencing guidelines on Maxwell’s drug charge call for a prison sentence of between seven and nine years, Billboard reported.
According to the Post, two of Maxwell’s co-defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess controlled substances. One of them also confessed to using firearms in connection with drug trafficking.
Billboard identified Maxwell’s five co-defendants as Anthony Leonardi, Robert Leonardi, Brian Sullivan, Kavaughn Wiggins and Anthony Cyntje, a New Jersey corrections officer. Leonardi pleaded guilty to the drug charge in June, while Cyntje pleaded guilty to both the drug and firearms charges at that time.
“The fact that we arrested a chart-topping rap artist and a corrections officer as part of the conspiracy illustrates just how vile the drug trade has become,” FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Michael J. Driscoll said in a prepared statement at the time of the October arrests, according to the entertainment news site.
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Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2015: Fetty Wap performs during Billboard Hot 100 Festival - Day 2 at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater on August 23, 2015, in Wantagh, New York. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Billboard)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2015: Rapper Fetty Wap performs onstage during 105.1's Powerhouse 2015 at the Barclays Center on October 22, 2015, in Brooklyn, N.Y. (Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for Power 105.1's Powerhouse 2015)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2016: Singers Aloe Blacc and Tori Kelly and rapper Fetty Wap attend the 2016 Pre-Grammy Gala and Salute to Industry Icons honoring Irving Azoff at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 14, 2016, in Beverly Hills, California. (Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2016: Recording artist Fetty Wap performs onstage at Firefly Music Festival on June 18, 2016, in Dover, Delaware. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Firefly)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2017: Fetty Wap attends the Alexander Wang February 2017 fashion show during New York Fashion Week on February 11, 2017, in New York City. (Jason Kempin/Getty Images)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2017: Rapper Fetty Wap walks the runway wearing look No. 16 for the Philipp Plein Fall/Winter 2017/2018 Women's and Men's Fashion Show at the New York Public Library on February 13, 2017, in New York City. (Concordia/Getty Images for Philipp Plein)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2018: Rapper Fetty Wap performs at Irving Plaza on January 20, 2018, in New York City. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2019: Fetty Wap attends the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards at Prudential Center on August 26, 2019, in Newark, New Jersey. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images for MTV)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2019: In this handout photo provided by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, rapper Willie Maxwell, aka Fetty Wap, is seen in a police booking photo after his arrest on three counts of battery September 1, 2019, in Las Vegas. (Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department via Getty Images)
Photos: Fetty Wap through the years 2022: Fetty Wap (left) and Monty (right) of the Remy Boyz pose with designer Abby Kheir (center) at the front row for Abyss By Abby 2023 Collection during Paraiso Miami Beach at the Paraiso Tent on July 14, 2022, in Miami Beach, Florida. (Rodrigo Varela/Getty Images for Abyss By Abby)
