Rapper Bassdown Bandy Avoids Human Trafficking Charges But Gets 5 Years In Prison

OAKLAND. The Fairfield resident and rapper was sentenced to five years in state prison in a plea deal with Alameda County prosecutors.

Last year, 29-year-old Michael Israelishia Moore was charged with trafficking and pimping a 16-year-old girl, who said he forced her into the sex trade and took all of the $5,000 in proceeds. By the end of the case, Moore, who raps under the name BussDown Bandy, avoided charges on both counts.

Instead, Moore pleaded no contest to robbery and witness intimidation and was formally sentenced to five years on December 18. He remains in the Santa Rita Jail pending transfer to the state penitentiary system, according to reports.

The investigation began in November 2023, when Oakland patrol officers encountered the girl outside a local convenience store and struck up a conversation with her because she appeared upset. The conversation led to a police interview where she allegedly identified Moore as her pimp, according to court records.

The girl said she had been trafficked by other men and was walking through a high-prostitution neighborhood in Los Angeles when Moore allegedly approached her, offered to smoke marijuana and offered to work for him as a prostitute instead. She later recognized Moore from a YouTube music video, authorities said.

The girl also reportedly told police that Moore was surprised when she told him her age, but he continued to talk to her, authorities said.

Moore was released from jail while the case was pending, but filed another criminal case in Los Angeles, which resulted in concurrent prison terms there, records show.