Tekashi 6ix9ine Deserves Months in Prison After He ‘Violated the Court’s Trust,’ Feds Say

Federal prosecutors are urging a judge to sentence Tekashi 6ix9ine to between three and nine months in prison for possessing drugs and assaulting someone who taunted him about flipping on former Brooklyn gangmates.

The rapper (Daniel Hernandez) is due to be sentenced by Judge Paul A. Engelmayer next Thursday (Nov. 20) after pleading guilty to multiple violations of his supervised release. Tekashi’s probation stems from a 2018 racketeering prosecution, in which he testified against other members of the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods in exchange for leniency.

Tekashi broke the rules of supervised release by possessing cocaine and MDMA this past February, then again by punching and kicking a man in August at a Florida mall, who made derogatory comments about his cooperation with law enforcement. Now, prosecutors say prison time is warranted because Tekashi “violated the court’s trust.”

“While it brings the government no joy to seek a custodial prison sentence for a former cooperator, the court must send a message to Hernandez and other government cooperators — or those considering cooperating with the government — that they are not above the law by virtue of their status as cooperators,” wrote Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Rebold in a Wednesday (Nov. 13) sentencing recommendation.

Meanwhile, Tekashi’s attorney says six months of house arrest is a more appropriate sentence. Defense lawyer Lance Lazzaro sought to put Tekashi’s violations in perspective in a Nov. 6 court letter, noting that the rapper was caught only with “a very small amount” of drugs and that the victim of his Florida assault, who was the “initial aggressor” in the dispute, was not seriously injured.

Lazzaro also advised Judge Engelmayer that for a cooperator like Tekashi, months in prison “end up being much more severe, difficult, and even dangerous, when compared to a typical inmate.”

“Due to Mr. Hernandez’ classification, he always serves his jail time segregated and fully isolated from other inmates,” wrote Lazzaro. “As a result, Mr. Hernandez is given extremely limited social interaction with other inmates and very little time outside to get fresh air and exercise.”

Neither Lazzaro nor a rep for the prosecution immediately returned requests for comment about the sentencing recommendations on Friday (Nov. 14).

Back in 2018, Tekashi pled guilty to nine racketeering, gun and drug charges related to his time in the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods. He admitted to being involved in a slew of violent incidents targeting rival rappers, including a 2017 assault of Trippie Redd, and testified against his former gang associates at a high-profile trial in 2019.  

The charges in Tekashi’s plea could have subjected him to decades in prison. But Judge Engelmayer sentenced him to just two years behind bars due to his “game-changing” and “brave” cooperation, and he got out even faster because of health risks during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tekashi began a five-year term of supervised release after getting out of jail in 2020. He had just months left on probation when, in November 2024, the rapper was charged with a host of violations, including using methamphetamine, failing to appear for drug tests and traveling to Las Vegas without permission.

The rapper admitted to these violations, and Judge Engelmayer sentenced him to 45 days in jail plus another year of supervised release. After his release last December, Tekashi was again caught violating probation by possessing cocaine and MDMA. Then came the Florida assault, which happened while he was awaiting sentencing for the drug violations.

Prosecutors now say that whatever sentence Tekashi receives on Nov. 20, it should be followed by a fresh two-year supervised release term. And this time, they add, he should be required to seek substance abuse treatment and anger management counseling.

“Hernandez is now six years removed from his criminal sentencing; yet he still appears unable to control his temper when slighted by a random stranger,” reads the prosecution’s sentencing memo. “Hernandez must learn to turn the other cheek and walk away from situations like these moving forward.”