(AllHipHop News) Ceschi Ramos, musician and owner of Fake Four Records, started serving an 18- month prison sentence yesterday (September 4).
The jail time stems from a drug bust on Christmas Day 2010, where Ceschi was charged with purchasing over 100 pounds of marijuana that was shipped cross-country from California to Connecticut, colorfully wrapped as Christmas gifts.
A plea bargain helped Ceschi avoid a 5–7 year sentence for the conviction.
Since yesterday, an IndieGoGo web page started by Ceschi’s brother, David Ramos has raised over $15,000 to help with legal fees and administrative costs for the record label during Ceschi’s prison term.
Ceschi says, “In the end, nearly 3 years later, I’ve been left with nearly $50,000 in legal debt. My best option was to accept a plea bargain compared to the 5 to 7 years I was facing.”
Fake Four records is a popular independent record label specializing in Experimental Hip-Hop which has released dozens of acclaimed albums by artists such as Myka 9, Blue Sky Black Death, Dark Time Sunshine, Open Mike Eagle, and Busdriver.
“Your support over the past 24 hours has been overwhelming. My brother now has an additional government issued number to add to his tax i.d., Social Security, and driver’s license numbers. In other words, he has been processed, now has an inmate number, and hopefully I will be able to see him today,” added Ceschi’s brother David Ramos. “I can’t express the magnitude of appreciation that my family and I have for all of you right now. Beyond the financial support, you have proven that Ceschi has influenced and positively impacted so many people with his music, Fake Four, and just being who he is. He is not just another prison number to all of us.”
Check out this Youtube video of Ceschi speaking on the situation:
http://youtu.be/iGy3Wcuh12M