Hit-and-Run Driver Who Killed Nicki Minaj’s Father Sentenced to a Year in Jail

Screengrab: Nicki Minaj/Instagram

The man responsible for the death of platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated rapper Nicki Minaj's father was sentenced to a year in jail on Wednesday.

Charles Polevich, 72, struck Robert Maraj with his Volvo station wagon while the 64-year-old was walking alongside the road in Mineola, New York, in February of 2021.

According to prosecutors, following the incident, Polevich briefly stopped to ask if Maraj was OK. Instead of alerting authorities or seeking help for Maraj, though, he drove home.

Polevich parked his car in the garage and covered it with a tarp. Maraj was later transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead the following day.

Following her father's death Minaj, who was born Onika Tanya Maraj in Trinidad and raised in Queens, wrote, "It has been the most devastating loss of my life," in a personal message she shared on her website.

 

Charles Polevich, 70, of Mineola. (Courtesy NCPD)

She added, "May his soul rest in paradise. He was very loved & will be very missed."

Prosecutors had sought a sentence of one to three years behind bars for Polevich. Nassau County Judge Howard Sturim decreed he would get “no more than one year in jail" after he pleaded guilty to leaving the scene and tampering with evidence.

Polevich was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and had his driver’s license suspended for six months.

In 2021, Charles Polevich killed Robert Maraj, Nicki Minaj’s father, in a hit-and-run. Today, he was sentenced to only 1 yr in prison after pleading guilty. America's criminal justice system has disappointed another family seeking justice & accountability. https://t.co/uF541SqADJ

— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) August 3, 2022

Minaj had yet to comment on the sentencing at press time, but Maraj’s widow, Carol Maraj, who is suing Polevich over the crash, did not mince words. 

According to reporting from Newsday, she said Polevich had left her husband “like a dog on the street” and that sparing him a longer jail sentence was a “slap in the face for the family."

The Battle for Prince's $156.4 Million Estate Comes to an End Six Years After His Death

jimieye  CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

It has been over six years since the cremation of Prince following his death at home from an accidental fentanyl overdose at the age of 57.

The question, however, of who would control and benefit from the estate of the legendary singer — who died without a will — was not put to rest until Monday.

A Minnesota judge signed off on a deal that authorizes the division of the $156 million estate evenly between two legal entities.

It will be split evenly between Primary Wave, a well-funded New York music company, and three of Prince's six heirs and their families and advisors.

According to court documents, Prince Oat Holdings LLC — owned by Primary Wave — consists of interests once held by half-siblings Tyka Nelson, Omarr Baker and Alfred Jackson, as well as three separate entities owned by the publishing company.

Prince Legacy LLC's membership consists of Prince's eldest half-siblings, Sharon Nelson, John Nelson and Norrine Nelson, as well as their advisors L. Londell McMillan and Charles Spicer.

The decision was made possible by the parties finally coming to a settlement on the value of the estate, originally appraised at $82.3 million by the estate’s administrator, Comerica Bank & Trust, in January.

Under Minnesota law, the six half-siblings were named his heirs when he died with no living children or spouse to claim his estate.

As part of the agreement, the heirs, and their advisors, along with Primary Wave will split $6 million in cash and potentially many times that in music rights and other valuable intangibles.

D-Nice Invest in Start-Up Aiming to Revolutionize How Cities and Residents Interact

Harlem hip-hop pioneer D-Nice helped bring the world closer together during the pandemic with his widely viewed live DJ sets dubbed "Club Quarantine."

The 52-year-old legend, perhaps best known for his work with influential rap group Boogie Down Productions and discovering Kid Rock, is hoping to continue that work on an even larger scale.

Towards that end, he recently announced an investment in Silicon Valley-based startup Simplicity.

The company boasts of revolutionizing how cities and residents communicate and interact.

It touts its U.S. Simplicity app as a "city in your phone where people can find all critical city updates, emergencies, outages and more."

D-Nice, whose real name is Derrick Jones, has joined the company's Advisory Board as an investor and ambassador for the City of Los Angeles.

Michelle Obama, Rihanna and More Tune in to DJ D-Nice's Virtual #ClubQuarantine pic.twitter.com/H5yn5JpbSp

— NewsOne (@newsone) March 23, 2020

"Club Quarantine demonstrated the power of technology as a tool to bring together a community of people around the power of music," he said in a statement. "Simplicity is another example of leveraging technology to lift the spirits and deepen the relationships among people in cities around the world. The alignment was too obvious not to be part of the movement."

Simplicity co-founder Juraj Gago added, "Having Derrick back up this critical mission is significant and can help the company achieve our main goal: to improve life in cities."

"Club Quarantine" was a genuine phenomenon during the pandemic's peak. The eclectic and inclusive live DJ sets grew from having an audience of thousands to over a million, seemingly overnight, as the shows became a virtual social gathering spot for music lovers.

D-Nice was named Entertainer of the Year at the 2021 NAACP Image Awards and has taken the show on the road. He will fulfill a lifelong dream on Aug. 4, when he performs the show live at New York City's famed Carnegie Hall.