By MICHAEL VIRTANEN
Associated Press
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Platinum-selling rapper Ja Rule
has left an upstate New York prison after serving most of his 2-year
sentence for illegal gun possession, but is heading straight into
federal custody in a tax case.
U.S. Marshals escorted the 36-year-old out of
Mid-State Correctional Facility at 9:30 Thursday morning. It wasn't
immediately clear where he'll serve time in the tax case.
The rapper, who had been in protective custody
because of his celebrity, has some time remaining on a 28-month sentence
for tax evasion.
His lawyer says Ja Rule, whose real name is Jeffrey
Atkins, may have less than six months left and may be eligible for a
halfway house. An order to pay $1.1 million in back taxes is 1 of the
main reasons he wants to get back to work.
Copyright 2013 The
Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
NEWS10 ABC
