A US$5.3 million lawsuit is set to be filed against polarising rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine.
6ix9ine — real name Daniel Hernandez — has been accused of breach of contract, fraud and defamation. Promoters Benhur Tesfalidet and Anton Alexander, the plaintiffs, allege that in 2018 Hernandez cancelled a concert without notice in favour of another gig at a different venue on the same night. The plaintiffs allege that Hernandez pocketed USD $58,470 of his $60,000 fee in advance.
An iteration of the lawsuit was originally filed in D.C. District Court in late 2018, but was ultimately pulled six months later. Now, as Complex reports, Tesfalidet and Alexander are set to refile the multi-million dollar suit before the end of June.
In addition to Hernandez, the suit names a slew of other defendants including former manager Kifano “Shotti” Jordan, MTA Booking, booker Will Cornish and 6ix9ine’s original manager Christian Ehigiator.
iHeartMedia, Inc., who was named as a defendant in the original suit, was omitted in the re-filed version.
The plaintiffs have accused 6ix9ine of making defamatory comments about them on social media. As Complex note, 6ix9ine claimed Alexander and Tesfalidet did not pay him. Labelling them “corrupt” and “scamming.”
6ix9ine boasts an elaborate rap sheet. The rapper was arrested in November 2018 on federal racketeering and firearms charges. He plead guilty to nine counts — including charges of racketeering conspiracy, firearms offences and drug trafficking.
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In 2015, Hernandez pled guilty to a felony count of use of a child in a sexual performance. He was sentenced four years probation, avoiding jail time.
Hernandez was handed a 24-month prison sentence, with five years of supervised release. He was initially facing 47 years to life in prison, but was awarded leniency after he testified as a state witness. In April, he was released from prison early amid the height of the coronavirus pandemic, as his asthma made him susceptible to the virus.