Frenchie was once credited for bringing Nicki Minaj and French Montana to Debra Antney before their “big break” — but now, the former rapper is gearing up to do some hard time.
The former Brick Squad Monopoly rapper, a cousin of Waka Flocka Flame, and a longtime associate of Gucci Mane was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Thursday (April 6) for his role in a 2021 home invasion in Suffolk County, Long Island, NY.
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Prosecutors successfully argued that the rapper was not only one of the men that illegally invaded the home, but also served as the getaway driver for the crew.
According to Patch, Frenchie (real name Gregg Hogan) was with a group of men when they violently broke into a home in Shirley, NY, on May 7, 2021, while the family residing there — including a teenager afflicted with autism — were sleeping.
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Frenchie and his crew then reportedly ordered the family to the ground and pistol-whipped the autistic teenager when he didn’t comply fast enough for their liking, leaving him with cuts all over his face.
Prosecutors also claimed that the collective targeted the home due to an erroneous belief that there was over $100,000 of marijuana stashed inside, according to Fox 5 NY.
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Ultimately, Frenchie was convicted of four violent felonies — three counts of first-degree burglary and one count of second-degree burglary — on June 21, 2022.
His lawyer said he plans to appeal the conviction. “I argued to [Supreme Court Justice Timothy P. Mazzei] that he didn’t tie anyone up, he didn’t have a gun, he didn’t pistol whip anybody,” Anthony Scheller, Esq. told Patch.
Scheller also claimed that his client didn’t know he was being included in the robbery. Instead, he said, Frenchie was merely going along with the others because they were taking him to a studio and paying him for laying some tracks.
But Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney didn’t buy it. “The pistol-whipping of an innocent autistic young man in a failed home invasion is among the most outrageous crimes we have prosecuted,” Tierney told Patch. Hopefully, this defendant’s conviction and significant prison sentence provide the victims with some sense of relief and security.”
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In total, five men — including Frenchie — were sentenced for their roles in the crime.
Two of the co-defendants — Donte Thomas and Miguel Ruiz — pleaded guilty to first-degree burglary and were sentenced to nine years in prison and 10 years in prison, respectively. Brayan Medrano pleaded guilty to second-degree attempted burglary and will be sentenced on May 17.
The fifth man, Hakim Muhammad, was convicted of murder in upstate Utica County, NY, in an unrelated incident. He was sentenced to 25 years to life for that crime, according to Tierney.
