Leonardo DiCaprio Named A Witness In Rapper Pras’ Money Laundering Trial

Actor Leonardo DiCaprio has been named as a witness in Fugees rapper Prakarel “Pras” Michel and Malaysian businessman Low Taek Jho’s money laundering trial, according to reports.

The Justice Department charged Pras and Jho Low in 2019 for allegedly conspiring to funnel more than $21 million in illegal foreign campaign contributions into former President Barack Obama’s 2012 presidential campaign.

Pras pleaded not guilty to the charges, and Low’s rep reportedly said that he denies any wrongdoing, even though he remains at large in China.

Both men were hit with additional charges, and were indicted for allegedly “orchestrating an unregistered, back-channel campaign” to influence the administration of then-President Donald Trump to drop a federal investigation of Low and others over the emblement of money from Malaysian development fund 1MDB.

Pras denied any wrongdoing pertaining to this matter, and he’s currently awaiting his trial.

On Oct. 9, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a proposed witness list in connection to the case, and DiCaprio, who had ties to Low, was named as the 25th person on the list, reports E! News.

In July of 2016, the Justice Department filed lawsuits seeking to seize assets ties to 1MDB, alleging that more than $3.5 billion was used to purchase a jet, real estate, a yacht and a jet to help finance movies like “The Wolf of Wall Street”, which stars DiCaprio.

A Picasso painting was also seized from DiCaprio after prosecutors said that it was purchased with $3.2 million in stolen funds and allegedly given to him by an associate of Low’s, according to the Washington Post.

DiCaprio gave secret testimony to a Washington D.C. grand jury in 2018 to testify as part of the Justice Department’s investigation into the matter, reported the Washington Post.

Pras’s trial will begin March of 2023.

Photo credit: Image via Getty/Mike Coppola/Jared Siskin