This Is What We Know About Raphy Pina’s Defamation Suit Against Don Omar
Rafael “Raphy” Pina Nieves, the founder of Pina Records founder and manager to Daddy Yankee and Natti Natasha (who is his fiance), has slapped fellow genre icon Don Omar with a defamation suit. Citing reputational and economic damages, the legal maneuver stems from Omar having called Pina “chota”–slang for “snitch”–on social media earlier this month.
Omar referenced Pina Nieves via a few lyrics in a now-deleted Facebook post on March 8.
Se soltó el loco
Me llaman la bestia
El agua bendita mezclá con el vino
La puta ostia
La estaca donde se amarran
Los guapos de tu barrio
Soy un cementerio lleno de raperos
Me apodan alvario
Pal culo no hay yeso
Marca el calendario
Choto no caigo preso
Y contrata sicarios
Va sin anestesia
Yo mismo té rotulo
Chota con evidencia
Yo mismo té postulo (Pina)
Omar was likely referring to a federal grand jury indictment of Pina Nieves last August on multiple charges of illegal possession of firearms, which were found on him in April. (Because Pina Nieves was convicted of fraud and money laundering in 2016, he cannot legally possess firearms.) Pina Nieves pled not guilty to the charges in a virtual arraignment, but the case remains open. If found guilty, Pina Nieves could face up to 10 years in prison per charge.
Pina Nieves defended himself in a video he recorded in January.
Primera Hora published a copy of a legal notice sent to Omar earlier this month through his lawyer María Domínguez, which Pina Nieves originally shared on Instagram. In it, Omar is said to have accused Pina Nieves of “having cooperated with law enforcement authorities.” Omar alleged to have proof, the letter continues, and this is “patently false and intended to cause Mr Pina Nieves reputational harm and to undermine his personal safety.” The lawyer then goes on to explain the definition of defamation under Florida law and reiterates that Pina Nieves “has never cooperated with law enforcement in any investigation or proceeding.”
Dominguez asked Omar for a “full and frank” retraction on or before March 16. After the date passed, Pina Nieves’ lawyer moved forward with the suit.
On March 9, Omar tweeted that urbano is a genre “governed by the rules of the streets”–presumably a message directed at Pina Nieves.
