Ex-Diddy-Signed NYC Rapper Gets Life Sentence for Murder Commuted, Eligible for Parole in 2025!

By Pennie Spruill Last updated Dec 26, 2023

A once-popular rapper who was signed to Sean “Diddy” Combs has been released from prison after being found not guilty of a cold-case murder in Manhattan. Gov. Kathy Hochul has also released 15 other prisoners. 49-year-old Travell “G Dep” Coleman had been in jail for more than 15 years for killing a robbery victim in East Harlem in 1993.

The case hadn’t been solved until 2010 when the once-promising artist went to the 25th Precinct station house and turned himself in. Coleman has been filled with guilt ever since the fatal armed robbery he did as a youth, according to the rapper’s lawyer.

Hochul commuted Coleman’s sentence on Friday, adding his case to the end-of-year mercy list that her office usually makes. Besides commuting the sentences of Coleman and three other prisoners, she also gave 12 people their freedom, with eight of them being linked to drug cases.

It is possible to get a pardon instead of a commutation, which shortens a prison term. Coleman used to get 15 years to life in prison, but now he only gets 13 years to life. Because of this, he will be able to get released early in 2025.

Ex-NYC rapper once signed by Diddy has life sentence for murder commuted — he’ll be eligible for parole in 2025
https://t.co/vmTeqW8iVQ

— IamLegend 🇺🇸 (@DarkSideAdvcate) December 24, 2023

Coleman, a New York City hip-hop artist-to-be, had a bright future ahead of him when he signed with Combs’ Bad Boy label in 1999. Some of his best-known songs are “Special Delivery” and “Let’s Get It.” He had problems later on when he got into drugs and other illegal activities, which was sad.

Throughout his illegal career, he was arrested over 25 times on drug, burglary, and theft charges. The suspect told the police that he was riding a bicycle when he approached the victim, John Henkel, on his bike at the corner of Park Avenue and East 114th Street on October 19, 1993, with the plan to rob him.

Colemen said he got a.40-caliber gun, shot the victim three times in the chest, and then threw the murder weapon into the East River when the fight was over. Last year, an investigator from the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg asked Hochul to think about cleaving Coleman.

The prosecutor talked about Coleman’s important accomplishments while he was serving his sentence and how ready he was to turn himself into the police. Officials from the state say Coleman earned an associate’s degree while he was in jail and actively participated in many rehabilitation programs, such as ones that helped stop violence and provided sobriety treatment.

When The Post called Robert Henkel, Henkel’s brother, on Sunday, he refused to say anything. As he told The Post in an interview last year, he strongly disagreed with Coleman’s request for a pardon, calling it “a farce.” He also said bad things about Bragg’s office for trying to get the killer released early.

In December, Henke said, “It’s understandable to call for clemency in drug-related crimes, but when it comes to murder, the situation is different.” “Let Coleman finish his 15-year sentence, and then think about giving him parole.”

“In a moving speech, Governor Hochul emphasized how important the clemency process is and said she understood it was her duty to recognize the amazing steps people have taken to change their lives and how they can be forgiven.”

Intense Debate: A Furious Grandma Sends Best Wishes for The Next Year!

Controversial Case: Georgia Prisoner Gets 30 Years for Meth Distribution!