After severing most of his two-year jail sentence for possession of an illegal gun, rapper Ja Rule left Oneida County Jail, located in central New York and now awaits word from the Federal Bureau of Prisons about where he'll serve his time in his tax case, reported Entertainment Weekly.
Ja Rule went to prison in June of 2011, after New York City police said they found a loaded .40-caliber semiautomatic gun in a rear door of Ja Rule's $250,000 luxury car after it was stopped for speeding, and he pleaded guilty in 2010, according to Entertainment Weekly.
He got out at his earliest release date, state correction spokeswoman Linda Foglia said. He had two misbehavior reports for unauthorized phone calls in February 2012 and had work assignments on lawn and grounds crews and participated in education programs, she said according to Associated Press.
The rapper, who had been in protective custody because of his celebrity, has some time remaining on a 28-month sentence for tax evasion, stated Washington Post.
Ja Rule, whose real name is Jeffrey Atkins, may have less than six months left and may be eligible for a halfway house, defense attorney Stacey Richman said. An order to pay $1.1 million in back taxes is one of the main reasons he wants to get back to work, she said, according to Washington Post.
However, the 36-year old rapper wanted the judge in his case to know that he in no way wanted to hide money from the government.
"I in no way attempted to deceive the government or do anything illegal," he told the judge. "I was a young man who made a lot of money - I'm getting a little choked up - I didn't know how to deal with these finances, and I didn't have people to guide me, so I made mistakes," reported Associated Press.
Richman said Ja Rule is looking forward to his daughter's graduation, reported Associated Press.
"He's a devoted father," she said, stated Associated Press.
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