Freddie Gibbs has been charged in his ongoing legal case where he is accused of raping a woman last year in Austria, according to Reuters.
He was formally charged with “sexual abuse of a defenseless or psychologically impaired person” because he is being accused of drugging a woman before allegedly raping her while he was on tour last July.
If convicted, Gibbs could face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
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The Piñata rapper sits in jail in Vienna awaiting further proceeding. He maintains his innocence and one of his lawyers, Theodore Simon, released a statement to HipHopDX emphasizing that just because Gibbs is charged with the crime does not mean he committed it.
“While Freddie Gibbs was charged with an offense today, it remains only an allegation, and it does not in any way change the actual facts that Freddie Gibbs is 100% innocent,” the statement says. “He continues to pursue every available means to demonstrate that he is absolutely innocent and that he has been both belatedly and wrongly accused. As the investigation and process continues, Mr. Gibbs remains hopeful that a thorough, searching and complete investigation will reveal the actual facts, including the absence of any scientific, physical, or credible evidence implicating him, thereby paving the way for his exoneration and return to his family and one-year old child. In accordance with Austrian procedure Mr. Gibbs has not as yet had the opportunity to provide the authorities and the Court with the substantial and compelling exonerating evidence that he has compiled.”
Gibbs was extradited to the country after being arrested in France in June. He initially sought to appeal the judgement, but decided not to in order to comply with law enforcement. He was released on bail in France and hopes to get released from jail in a similar way in Austria.
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“Consistent with the available legal practices and procedures in Austria, Mr. Gibbs will ask the Court to release him on bail, under reasonable terms and conditions, as was done in France,” Simon continues. “Through counsel Mr. Freddie Gibbs has consistently remained fully cooperative with law enforcement offices and judicial systems in both France and Austria and will continue to do so.”
