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The rapper Casanova has been sentenced to more than 15 years in prison on federal racketeering conspiracy and drug charges related to his involvement in what prosecutors called “a vicious street gang.”
A New York federal judge on Tuesday (June 27) sentenced the artist (real name Caswell Senior) to 188 months in prison after he pleaded guilty last year to one charge under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), as well as a charge of conspiracy to distribute over 100 kilograms of marijuana.
Casanova, a Brooklyn rapper once signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, was one of 18 men charged in 2020 for their alleged roles in the Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation gang, which prosecutors said “committed terrible acts of violence” across the New York City region.
“Caswell Senior is not just a notorious recording artist, but he is also a high-profile leader of a vicious street gang and a magnet for gang violence,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement after the sentencing, adding that Casanova’s stature had helped the gang recruit and expand nationwide. “Gang life is not worth it and will lead to many years in prison.”
Prior to the criminal charges, Casanova had been an up-and-coming artist, peaking at No. 3 on Billboard’s Next Big Sound chart in 2019 after the release of his album Behind These Scars. Chatting with Billboard at the time, Casanova said he was hopeful for the future, but knew that his past could return to haunt him: “People will always blame you for your past. I’m ok with that; I just have to fight harder. I have to do more to get recognized.”
In December 2020, he was one of 18 defendants named in the sweeping RICO case over Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation, which prosecutors said operated a violent narcotics operation across the NYC metro area, including the murder of a teenage boy in Poughkeepsie. The allegations even included “brazen fraud” for exploiting benefits programs providing assistance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May 2022, Casanova pleaded guilty to the RICO conspiracy charge and the drug charge. Among other things, he admitted to participating in a July 2020 shootout at a crowded Miami house party in which he personally shot a man, leaving the victim seriously injured.
Ahead of Tuesday’s sentencing, federal prosecutors requested a prison term ranging from 188 to 235 months, calling Casanova “a high-profile gang leader” who had “amplified the message of the gang” through his music, helping to recruit “a generation of new members.”
“He did not simply pretend to be violent in his music or on social media,” the government wrote. “Unfortunately, he walked the walk. Senior’s offense conduct is not about a few song lyrics or how he marketed his music. Rather, he carried out an array of violent activity and significant narcotics trafficking that benefited some of the gang’s most violent and impactful members.”
Casanova’s attorneys argued that he should receive a sentence well below those guidelines. They said he was “not involved in the gang’s daily activities” and had begun “to distance himself” from the group as his music career took off, including having “denounced gang life” in some public statements.
“The fact is that Mr. Senior stayed in this gang as it furthered his rap career,” Casanova’s lawyers wrote. “As he gained moderate success and then a recording contract with Roc Nation, he increasingly separated himself from the gang’s activities despite remaining a member.”
In a statement to Billboard on Wednesday, Casanova’s lawyer, James Kousouros, said he and his client were “gratified that the court acknowledged the productive messages that Mr. Senior had been giving against gang life over the past several years and sentenced him to the lowest end of the guidelines.”
Quantavious Grier, brother of rapper Young Thug, was sentenced Monday (June 5) to nine years and six months in prison after investigators said he violated his probation.
According to WSB-TV, in December, Grier (who performs under the name Unfoonk) pleaded guilty to one count of violating the RICO Act and one count of theft by receiving stolen property as part of the wider YSL case involving Young Thug and several other associates. At the time, Grier was sentenced to 12 years in prison, with two years commuted and 10 years probation.
But on May 4, Grier was arrested again in Atlanta for possessing a firearm by a convicted felon, being associated with a criminal street gang to participate in illegal activity and traffic offenses, WSB-TV reports. According to the outlet, at the time of his arrest, Grier was parked at a BP gas station in a black Mercedes G-Wagon with a group of people around the driver’s side door; in an affidavit, plainclothes officers wrote that they deemed the gathering a possible drug deal. When the SUV pulled away, the officers stopped it, citing a window tint violation and adding that the vehicle smelled like marijuana, which remains illegal in the state of Georgia.
WSB-TV reports that the officer who wrote the affidavit noted a handgun in plain view inside the vehicle: “Mr. Grier advised that the gun was clean, which prompted me to believe he had knowledge of the firearm being there.”
During Monday’s sentencing, Judge Ural Glanville stated that Grier hadn’t paid $141.08 in probation fees or started his community service, but that the deciding factor in his sentencing was being caught with a firearm. “Part of the special condition was that you weren’t supposed to possess a gun,” he added. While Grier’s attorney had asked for a probation revocation of two years in prison, Glanville ultimately handed down the longer sentence.
“The issue I find aggravating in this particular circumstance are several. You got arrested with a gun within six months of you being placed on probation,” Glanville said during the sentencing. “All you had to do was complete your probation and do what you were supposed to do.”
An attorney for Grier did not immediately respond to Billboard‘s request for comment.
Grier was indicted alongside Young Thug (real name Jeffery Williams), Gunna (real name Sergio Kitchens) and dozens of others in May on accusations that their group, YSL, was not really a record label called “Young Stoner Life” but instead a violent Atlanta street gang called “Young Slime Life.” The charges include allegations of murder, carjacking, armed robbery, drug dealing and illegal firearm possession over the course of the past decade. Though Gunna pleaded out in December, Young Thug remains in prison ahead of trial.
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It seems Gunna has undergone a lifestyle change since accepting his plea deal. A new photo has surfaced online and he has lost some serious weight.
As per HipHopDX the College Park, Georgia native has kept a very low profile since taking a plea deal. While it remains to be seen whether he and Young Thug are still on good terms or if he is signed to Young Stoner Life Records; it seems he has recently prioritized his health. This week a photograph leaked online showing the “Pushin P” MC with hanging with some assumed friends. While he wasn’t front and center in the group shot it is apparent he lost some weight and added some muscle definition in the process.
Naturally his leaner frame caused a stir prompting folks to compare him to Gucci Mane; another Atlanta star who got in shape. “They cloned Gunna like they did Gucci Mane,” one user tweeted. As expected some used the opportunity to get a joke off at the rapper’s expense. “Lost the auntie hips!” another user responded. “The rest of the wide hipped men should follow.” The new photo spotting comes on the heels of Gunna teasing his comeback to music. Last week Gunna responded to a fan page on Instagram saying “I’m on the way.”
Young Thug is currently on trial fighting a 56-count Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) indictment filed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. He has plead not guilty to all the charges.
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The judge presiding over the racketeering case of Young Thug has ordered a probe over the release of a video showing a possible evidence leak.
According to reports, Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Ural Glanville ordered the investigation after a video was posted online where a witness was offering to provide information about the rapper for leniency. The footage was taken from an interview conducted in 2021.
On Wednesday (March 1), Judge Glanville issued a reminder to attorneys for the prosecution and the defense that certain evidence must be kept secret until the trial. “It affects everyone’s right to a fair trial,” the judge said. “I don’t know who did this but if this pertains to you, please amend your ways. You’re playing a very dangerous game with your six-digit bar number.”
Gina Bernard, the defense attorney for JayMan aka Jayden Myrick, filed a motion for a mistrial over the video leak citing that it “made it impossible for him to receive a fair trial, as well as a jury that is honestly and truly fair and impartial.”
Prosecutors countered that the video might’ve been leaked by the defense. “The state has absolutely no interest in leaking this video to members of the public, as its dissemination serves only to intimidate and harass witnesses called upon by the state to testify in a very serious and high-profile case,” they wrote.
Judge Glanville dismissed the motion and also warned that if more evidence makes it into the public eye that he will only let discovery evidence be shown in his chambers. “For me to have to deal with this at this point in the trial is just unacceptable,” he said. Currently, jury selection for the trial has been going on for two months and is expected to go on for another several months.
The highly-publicized trial of Young Thug and 13 of his YSL associates for racketeering and other criminal activities is projected to take six to nine months. Prosecutors claim that the group billed themselves as “Young Slime Life,” and operated a criminal enterprise associated with the Bloods gang in Atlanta, Georgia. Defense attorneys claim that YSL simply stands for “Young Stoner Life” and it represents a record label founded by Young Thug.
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Hip-Hop’s most infamous RICO case is getting more interesting by the day. Some of Rap’s biggest names could be called as witnesses in the YSL trial.
As per WSBT 2, Young Thug might be tapping into his Rap rolodex so folks can vouch for his character. Reporter Michael Seiden obtained the potential witness list for his defense. Included are Dwayne Carter, a.k.a. “Lil Wayne”; Dequantes Lamar, a.k.a. “Rich Homie Quan”; Bryan Williams, a.k.a. “Birdman”. His co-defendant Miles Farley listed Clifford Harris, Jr. a.k.a, “T.I.”; Nayvadius DeMun Wilburn a.k.a “Future”; and Michael Lamar White II a.k.a “Trippie Red.
The state has listed YFN Lucci, born Rashawn Bennett, as a potential witness as well. But the rapper’s legal team denies that he will take the stand in the trial. “Rayshawn Bennett (Lucci), has never been interviewed or subpoenaed by law-enforcement, the Fulton County District Attorney‘s office or any of the party’s regarding the YSL case” said Drew Findling and Marissa Goldberg of The Findling Law Firm.
“Any party can announce for example that Abraham Lincoln is on their witness list, but those words alone are meaningless. So, to be 100% clear, Rayshawn Bennett (Lucci) will not be a witness in the YSL case. His focus, as it should be, is on his pending Fulton County case.”
YFN Lucci has long-standing problems with Young Thug and the YSL crew. Back in 2019 Thug posted that he is the new 2 Pac to which YFN responded “Pac would’ve never wore a dress.” From there things went left and some menacing threats were hurled both ways. Young Thug went on Instagram Live and said he was going to slap both Lucci and his comrade Sauce Walka.
The YSL trial starts next week.
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The YSL RICO case goes to trial next month and among the more than two dozen defendants, two more have come forth to enter guilty pleas. The pair joins Sergio “Gunna” Kitchens and Walter “DK” Murphy of alleged YSL members who entered plea deals.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that rapper Slimelife Shawty, real name Wunnie Lee, entered an Alford Plea, the same as Gunna, which means that he maintains his innocence while accepting that it was in his best legal interest to accept the deal. Slimelife Shawty pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act as a first offender. His 10-year sentence was commuted to one-year with time serviced and nine years of probation.
Martinez Arnold, who is a native of California, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the state’s RICO act and participation in criminal street gang activity. With his plea, Arnold had five gun and drug charges dropped and is allowed to visit California to see family.
Both men were ordered to honor a curfew that runs from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. unless they are in school, working or in need of medical care.
As a result of the plea deals taken this week, YSL defendants, including Young Thug, remain ahead of the Jan. 4 jury selection with a handful of the group stating they are without legal representation.
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