Late Rapper Werenoi’s Producer Faces Trial in October: Charged with Group Violence

The trial of Werenoi’s producer, set for October, revolves around allegations of group violence reported by an individual close to the late artist who passed away abruptly in mid-May, as disclosed by the Bobigny public prosecutor’s office. Babiry Sacko, also known as Babs, will also face charges for inciting criminal activity through communication means. However, he has been cleared of the extortion charges previously leveled against him. Since the chart-topping rapper’s death, there has been a notable dispute over his estate among his associates. Mr. Sacko has been placed under judicial supervision pending his court appearance at the 16th chamber of the Bobigny correctional tribunal on October 24. The decision to proceed to trial followed the producer’s custody, which was part of an investigation initiated after the accusations made by someone close to the rapper, the prosecutor’s office added, confirming reports from Le Parisien.

According to the newspaper, a young woman was allegedly assaulted by the producer and three other men at a shisha bar in Montreuil (Seine-Saint-Denis) at the end of May. The conflict reportedly centers around a sum of one million euros previously owned by the rapper. In a press statement issued at the end of June, the producer’s lawyer Me Mourad Battikh claimed that the young woman “unjustly holds one million euros in a bank account in Dubai, money that belonged to Werenoi and is now meant for his children.” On May 17th, Werenoi, born Jérémy Bana Owona, died at the age of 31 at a Paris hospital following a sudden deterioration in his health. Having quickly risen to fame, the rapper was recognized as the top-selling album artist in France in 2023 and 2024, as per the National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing.