Tekashi 6ix9ine Released From Prison Early Following Coronavirus Plea

Concerns about coronavirus have led to an early release for Tekashi 6ix9ine. The rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, was granted a compassionate release from behind bars, which went into effect on Thursday, according to TMZ.

6ix9ine was released from the New York facility where he had been serving his two-year sentence. Now, he will do the rest of his time at home under supervised release. The first four months of his home incarceration will require him to wear a GPS monitor and is required to remain at an address that's been approved by his probation officer. The judge's order does allow him to travel only if he needs to seek necessary medical treatment or visit his attorney, though he must get approval from the probation department to do so.

The rapper was initially arrested back in November of 2018 and pled guilty to nine federal charges leveled against him in February of 2019. The charges included conspiracy, attempted murder, conspiracy to distribute heroin, and four firearms-related charges. He also agreed to cooperate and work with federal officials "against multiple violent people associated with the same criminal enterprise of which he admits, or will soon apparently admit, being a member"

He was later sentenced to 24 months in prison in December of 2019. Judge Engelmayer, who presided over the case, had also mentioned incidents with rappers Casanova, Trippie Redd and Chief Keef. He went on to note that "before you, the gang didn't fight with rap entourages. They had no independent interest in going after musicians and their management groups... I reject the portrait of you as a passive participant."

The issue of how to handle prisoners amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak has been a concern, as confirmed cases have topped the one million mark as of Thursday. Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage, better known as Joe Exotic from the Netflix series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness is currently in isolation after being transferred to a federal facility near Fort Worth, Texas.

Such practices with prisoner transfers have become commonplace in order to help slow the spread. Additionally, disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein tested positive for COVID-19 while just beginning to serve his 23-year sentence for rape and sexual assault.

According to Johns Hopkins University, there are 238,230 reported cases in the U.S., with 5,648 deaths and 8,889 recoveries.