Nicki Minaj’s Husband Could Face Decade in Prison for Failing to Register as Sex Offender

Nicki Minaj’s husband Kenneth Petty’s legal trouble continues. The 43-year-old beau to the rap superstar has pled guilty for failing to register as a sex offender in the state of California. Petty is already registered in the state of New York, but not in Cali where he now lives. He entered the plea on Thursday, Sept. 9 with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California via virtual hearing, according to PEOPLE.

Petty now potentially faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised probation. His sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 24. Petty’s major legal issues began in 1995 when he was convicted of first-degree attempted rape of a 16-year-old girl while holding her at knifepoint. At the time, Petty was also 16. He served four years in prison and later registered as a sex offender in New York.

After being stopped by traffic police in November 2019 in Beverly Hills, police determined he was not registered in CA. He recently sued the State of New York as well as the Criminal Justice Services division in August 2021 to have his name removed from the New York’s Sex Offender Registry. Per Petty, he was never offered the chance to legally defend certain aspects of his sex offender status.

Minaj has come across harsh criticism for her marriage to Petty. The two have also been accused of trying to intimidate and bribe Petty’s accuser.