Mystikal requests to withdraw guilty plea in Louisiana rape case
Mystikal has asked to withdraw his guilty plea in his rape case.
In March, the 55-year-old rapper pleaded guilty to third-degree rape in an Ascension Parish courtroom. However, he’s now gone back on his decision.
According to WBRZ, Mystikal has requested to withdraw his plea, claiming he “did not have sufficient opportunity to fully consider the consequences” before admitting to the crime.
The musician filed the motion on June 12th, just days before he was set to be sentenced. He’s facing up to 20 years in prison.
At the time, Mystikal claims he was “under significant emotional distress and felt substantial pressure to make an immediate decision.”
Mystikal was arrested at his Prairieville home in 2022 on charges of first-degree rape, domestic abuse battery-strangulation, and false imprisonment, initially entering a not guilty plea.
He was arrested after a woman went to the hospital and claimed she was sexually assaulted. A spokesperson for the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office said, “Once we got there, we talked to the victim, who had some very visible injuries on her body, and she was very distraught.”
They continued, “She talked with us, we interviewed her, and she was able to identify who the suspect was. And in this case, it was Michael Tyler, also known as Mystikal.”
Mystikal is best known for hit singles such as ‘Shake Ya Ass’, which reached number 13 on the Hot 100, and ‘Danger (Been So Long)’, which reached number 14.
He released two albums on No Limit Records, Unpredictable and Ghetto Fabolous. His 2022 album Let’s Get Ready debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 330,663 copies sold in its first week.