YFN Lucci is alive and well after rumors of his death in prison, his lawyer has confirmed to The Times.
The 33-year-old rapper, whose real name is Rayshawn Lamar Bennett, in January pleaded guilty to a gang-related charge after reaching a deal with prosecutors nearly three years after he was indicted on murder, gang and racketeering charges in Atlanta. He is serving a 10-year prison sentence.
This week, a rumor that the “Documentary” rapper was killed gained traction on social media. Drew Findling, who represented the rapper during his RICO trial, has since shut the rumor mill down, TMZ first reported. (Findling previously defended former President Donald Trump in his Georgia election interference case before another attorney took his place for undisclosed reasons.)
The death hoax comes two weeks after YFN Lucci’s former labelmate Rich Homie Quan, also 33, was found dead in his Atlanta home. The Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet disclosed the “Lifestyle” rapper’s cause of death.
YFN Lucci was among a dozen charged alleged Bloods gang members in a May 2021 indictment. A few months prior, he was charged with murder after police said he was the driver in a gang-related drive-by shooting that killed 28-year-old James Adams, Rolling Stone reported.
As part of a plea deal, prosecutors dropped 12 of 13 counts against YFN Lucci and he pleaded guilty to a single count of violating the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act. He was sentenced to 10 years on parole on top of his prison sentence. But the rapper may now be eligible by January 2025 after the District Attorney of Fulton County in July submitted a letter to the State Board of Pardons and Paroles supporting his early release from prison.
“The District Attorney of Fulton County did the unorthodox,” Findling told WSB-TV in Atlanta. “That letter from the district attorney is a powerful punch and is really at the heart of the letter and supporting documents and the memorandum that we have shared with the parole board.”
YFN Lucci was stabbed in jail in February 2022, and three YSL defendants were charged with attempted murder in connection, according to a May 2022 indictment.
Following the stabbing, Findling said that his client did not want any cooperation deal and refused to testify against Young Thug in the ongoing racketeering trial that will determine whether the latter rap star was a key figure of criminal street gang Young Slime Life, or YSL. The Atlanta gang allegedly claims “affiliation with the national Bloods gang,” The Times previously reported.
The YSL trial began in November and has been repeatedly delayed by the juggling of presiding judges, an online leak of a juror’s identity, and the stabbing of co-defendant Shannon Jackson, also known as Shannon Stillwell.
Defense attorneys have repeatedly raised concerns about the trial’s length, and Fulton County prosecutors still have more than 100 witnesses to call, Atlanta News First reported Wednesday.