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Nicki Minaj’s husband registers as sex offender in California

Kenneth (Zoo) Petty (L) and Nicki Minaj attend Church On Sundays Hosted By Nicki Minaj And Phil The Mayor And DJ Clues Birthday Party at The Argyle on Feb. 8, 2019 in Hollywood, Calif. Johnny Nunez/Getty Images

Nicki Minaj‘s husband Kenneth Petty has officially registered as a sex offender in California.

Billboard has confirmed that the Yikes rapper’s husband is now listed in the California database of sexual offenders and likely registered within.

Click to play video: 'Rapper Nicki Minaj marries Kenneth Petty'
Rapper Nicki Minaj marries Kenneth Petty

Petty turned himself in to federal custody on March 4 after reportedly failing to register as a sex offender in California.

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The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office announced on March 6 that it was dropping charges against the rapper’s husband, but if Petty is convicted of the same felony charge, he faces up to 10 years in prison.

Petty, 41, was convicted of first-degree attempted rape 25 years ago in New York and served four years behind bars. He was released in January 1999.

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After his release, Petty was ordered to register as a sex offender in the state of New York, but he failed to re-register when he moved to California in July 2019 after marrying Minaj.

Click to play video: 'Nicki Minaj says she’s ‘retiring’ in Twitter post'
Nicki Minaj says she’s ‘retiring’ in Twitter post

Petty was arrested in November 2019 during a traffic stop by the Beverly Hills Police Department and authorities determined he was a registered sex offender in New York state but had not registered in California.

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He was released on a $20,000 bond, but authorities said he failed to go through with the registration, which is required under the 2006 Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

According to SORNA, a sex offender is “required to update their registration in each jurisdiction they reside, are employed, or attend school,” and failure to register is considered a federal crime.

According to Petty’s New York State Sex Offender Registry, he is registered as a Level 2 sex offender.

The registry states Petty was convicted of attempted first-degree rape in April 1995 in connection with a 1994 assault that occurred when he and the victim were both 16 years old. It also mentions he used a knife or cutting instrument during the crime.

Click to play video: 'Nicki Minaj returns home to Queens to give back to the community'
Nicki Minaj returns home to Queens to give back to the community

In 2006, Petty pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in the 2002 fatal shooting of Lamont Robinson. He was given a 10-year prison sentence but was released in 2013 after serving seven years.

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