Casanova Asks For Reduction Of Prison Sentence, Denies Robbery Charges

BYGabriel Bras Nevares1.6K Views
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The rapper also cited that his "extraordinary acceptance of responsibility" warrants mercy.

Amid his appeal process for his 15-year prison sentence, Casanova is trying to reduce his jail time by disputing whether his crimes are even crimes to begin with. Moreover, the rapper cited his "extraordinary acceptance of responsibility" for his racketeering charges as a valid reason to show mercy in this regard. For those unaware, these charges are allegedly in connection with the Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation Bloods gang. A more important part of this motion is the claim that his robbery charges are invalid, considering that the incident he was arrested for don't legally constitute a robbery under New York state law. This stems from an altercation at the Good Stuff Diner in 2018.

Furthermore, this fight with Niya Rucker, who recorded him at the restaurant, is a big contributing factor to Casanova's conviction. He's one of 18 codefendants in a racketeering case for murder, attempted murder, drug dealing, and other charges. Back to this New York occurrence, though, Rucker claims the 36-year-old's colleagues choked and cut her while trying to delete the footage from her phone, and even broke her jaw. Following two counts of felony robbery, he and his lawyer denied these accusations and maintained that Rucker left with her phone.

Casanova At The 2019 BET Awards

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 05: Casanova attends the BET Hip Hop Awards 2019 at Cobb Energy Center on October 05, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for BET)

As such, they argued that this wasn't a robbery at all and the charges are unjust. While this case doesn't constitute the crime or larceny in the legal definition, Casanova still accepted his conviction and even acknowledged that the crime was, in fact, more severe than what they charged him with. This accountability is what the Brooklyn MC believes justifies a more merciful sentence. In addition, he claimed to cut ties with Gorilla Stone.

Meanwhile, this complicated situation and his denouncement of the criminal organization yielded other personal consequences. For example, inmates attacked him back in June, and it's unclear how tied this incident is to his actual case. Regardless, it seems like things may not be as bleak for him, although it will be a tough case to make. On that note, come back to HNHH for the latest news and updates on Casanova.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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