Maes at the center of an explosive investigation into the links between French rap and organized crime

The book, titled "The Empire: An Investigation at the Heart of French Rap," details how the commercial explosion of rap since 2015 has attracted organized criminal groups. The case of rapper Maes is at the center of these revelations. Currently incarcerated in Morocco, the artist of Moroccan origin is suspected of having ordered several murders while he was in exile in Dubai.

According to the information revealed by the authors, the artist’s troubles began in 2020. Originally from Sevran, he would have been the target of extortion attempts by individuals from his own city, who even went as far as setting fire to vehicles on the set of one of his music videos.

Refusing to give in, Maes would have retaliated, triggering a shootout. To protect himself from retaliation, he went into exile in Dubai with his family. However, this flight did not protect his entourage, as his manager was assassinated during a trip to France.

Faced with this tragedy, the rapper would have decided to take revenge by ordering retaliation against the initial perpetrators of the extortion. This escalation earned him to be wanted by Interpol. Feeling that his situation was becoming untenable, he left Dubai to avoid extradition, before being finally arrested in Morocco, where he is currently awaiting his transfer to France, which will never happen, as Morocco never extradites its nationals.