No one saw this coming. It has been disclosed that Pras Michel of the rap group Fugees was an FBI informant.
Vibe reports Michel testified on Tuesday (April 18) during his conspiracy trial and admitted he was provided information to the FBI.
Michel was a U.S. informant at the time of China’s plan to “extradite dissident Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui with assistance from Malaysian financier Jho Low, a current fugitive.” He also said he convened with FBI agents several times to talk about Guo and three Americans that were held hostage in China.
“I took it upon myself to report because I thought the FBI should know,” Michel said during his testimony.
Michel pleaded not guilty to federal charges of conspiracy and falsifying records and is now standing trial. The charges are related to Low’s crimes, which include an allegation of stealing $4.5 billion from Malaysia’s 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.
Michel told Rolling Stone he met Low when he was considering entering politics “to help people,” but later learned politics wasn’t his calling.
“I was one of those people who was just dabbling,” Michel said. “I never thought I would be full-time into politics. I realized politics is not for me. The problem with politics is this: It’s that the people within politics, they’re dirtier than the people who are not in politics.”
Michel could face up to 22 years in federal prison if he’s convicted. He maintains that he didn’t make political donations on Low’s behalf.
