Jeremy Deputat
Lil Mosey Pleads Not Guilty to Rape Charge
Lil Mosey has pleaded not guilty to a second-degree rape charge.
The “Blueberry Faygo” rapper, whose real name is Lathan Moses Echols, appeared in Lewis County Superior Court in Chehalis, Wash. on Tuesday (April 27) after he failed to show up for a scheduled preliminary appearance last week.
According to defense attorney Jennifer Atwood, the court summons was sent to an address Echols had not lived at for five years and that he had no knowledge of his court summons. As a result, the prosecutor agreed to drop the $50,000 warrant.
Echols, 19, was joined by his attorneys and his parents. Bail was set at $50,000 and Echols does not have to pay any of it unless he breaks his release conditions. A judge also agreed to accommodate his tour schedule, which includes upcoming performances throughout the U.S. and Canada.
“I will allow the travel,” Judge James W. Lawler said, according to The Chronicle. “It’s not like he can go off and hide somewhere because that would make this so much worse.”
Echols, along with co-defendant Francisco Prater, is accused of raping a woman after she and a friend visited the rapper at a party in Randle, Wash. on Jan. 6, 2020. One victim claims that she consented to sexual relations with Mosey in a car, but blacked out after consuming White Claws and champagne. She said she later awoke to both men assaulting her inside the residence and reported injuries including bruises on her arms, neck, and knees.
Echols’ next court appearance is set for June 17 ahead of his July 19 trial date. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.