Morocco Jails French Rapper, Walid Georgey, For Kidnapping Bid.A Moroccan court has sentenced French rapper Maes to seven years in prison on charges including the formation of a criminal gang and attempted kidnapping.
Maes, who has roots in Morocco and whose real name is Walid Georgey, was arrested upon landing in Morocco in January after fleeing the United Arab Emirates, where he feared he could be extradited to France.
French authorities had issued an international arrest warrant for him over a separate criminal case.
He appeared in court late Tuesday and was found guilty of “forming a criminal organisation, attempted abduction and unlawful confinement” of a rival in Morocco.
The rapper with over a billion views on his YouTube channel was accused of tasking a gang and hitmen with killing the rival, but the plot was foiled.
Maes has denied all charges, with his lawyers calling the case “empty” and “arguing that no evidence linked him to the other defendants”.
Ten other people were sentenced as part of the case, with terms ranging from one to 10 years.
In 2020, when Maes was one of France’s most-streamed rappers, he fell victim to extortion attempts in his native Sevran, a suburb north of Paris.
