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American rapper Mystikal on Tuesday pleaded guilty to third-degree rape in connection with a case that led to his arrest in 2022.
Mystikal – whose given name is Michael Tyler – faces up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty in a state courthouse outside Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The 55-year-old had originally been charged with more serious offences, to which he pleaded not guilty.
The charges include: first-degree rape, simple robbery, domestic abuse battery and false imprisonment.
Mystikal's guilty plea was reportedly part of a deal that reduced the overall severity of the case against him. If convicted as originally charged, he would have faced mandatory life imprisonment.
Mystikal scored a global hit in 2000 with Shake Ya A-- and subsequently was nominated for two Grammy awards.
He also had an album debut at the top of the Billboard 200 before being sentenced to six years in prison in 2004 after being found guilty of sexual assault and extortion in a case involving his hairstylist.
That earlier conviction required Mystikal to register as a sex offender.
