Donald Trump has pardoned Death Row Records co-founder and former drug kingpin Michael ‘Harry O’ Harris after a secret campaign by rapper Snoop Dogg, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal.
Harris, 59, is set to be released from a California federal prison Tuesday after 32 years behind bars for attempted murder and cocaine trafficking.
Snoop Dogg, who rapped under Harris’ infamous record label in the 1990s alongside Dr Dre and Tupac Shakur, enlisted Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and justice reform campaigners to convince Trump.
The last-ditch attempt succeeded on Monday when the outgoing president signed Harris’ pardon. DailyMail.com understands White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows advised Trump against signing the pardon, but the 45th president was swayed by his family.
The erstwhile drug king helped run a multi-million dollar rap music empire from his cell after founding the parent company for Death Row Records with a $1.5 million investment.
Alongside his dealings with drug cartels, Harris ran a string of successful legitimate businesses, including a theatre company that gave actor Denzel Washington his first break.