Nicki Minaj's husband gets sentenced after failing to register as a sex offender

Los Angeles, California - Kenneth Petty, the husband of rapper Nicki Minaj, was sentenced to probation and house arrest on Wednesday after failing to register himself as a sex offender.

Nicki Minaj's husband Kenneth Petty (r.) was sentenced on Wednesday to probation and house arrest after failing to register as a sex offender.
Nicki Minaj's husband Kenneth Petty (r.) was sentenced on Wednesday to probation and house arrest after failing to register as a sex offender.  © Jamie McCarthy/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP

Prior to meeting Minaj, Petty (44) was convicted on a first-degree attempted rape charge in April 1995 when he was 16 years old. He served nearly four years in a New York state prison for the crime, and was forced to register afterwards as a sex offender.

According to the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, Petty and previously convicted sex offenders are "required to update their registration in each jurisdiction they reside, are employed or attend school."

When he failed to do so after the couple moved to California in March 2020, he was arrested. Petty plead guilty in September 2021.

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Prosecutors with the US Attorney's Office reportedly argued that house arrest would not be a suitable punishment for Petty because he lived in a "gated affluent community," but the judge seemed to disagree.

On Wednesday, he was sentenced to three years probation, one year of house arrest, and a $55,000 fine.

He was also convicted of first-degree manslaughter over a shooting that took place in 2002. He spent seven years in prison and was released in 2013.

Despite Petty's troubled past, Minaj has repeatedly defended her significant other. She shared rare photos on Instagram of her with her husband and their one-year-old son on Wednesday, shortly after news of the sentencing broke.

Cover photo: Jamie McCarthy/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP

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