If you were watching Love & Hip Hop: New York back in the mid-2010s, you remember the drama. It wasn't just about the music or the screaming matches at reunion specials. The dark cloud hanging over everything was Mendeecees Harris’s legal situation. One minute he’s the cool music manager and devoted partner to Yandy Smith, and the next, he’s facing a massive federal indictment. It felt like it came out of nowhere, but the feds had been watching for a long time.
So, why did Mendeecee go to jail? Honestly, it wasn't for some minor slip-up or a misunderstanding. It was a heavy-duty federal drug trafficking case.
The Reality of the Charges
Basically, Mendeecees was caught up in a conspiracy to distribute large amounts of cocaine and heroin. We aren't talking about a small street-level deal. This was a sophisticated operation that moved weight between New York City and the Rochester area. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York, the conspiracy lasted from roughly 2005 all the way until 2012.
Think about that timeline.
While he was becoming a household name on VH1, his past was sprinting to catch up with him. The feds alleged—and he eventually admitted—that he helped ferry these drugs upstate. He wasn't alone, though. His brother, Tyrus Harris, and another associate named Ronald Walker were also involved. Walker eventually took a plea and got 10 years, which set the stage for how serious this was going to get for Mendeecees.
The Plea Deal and the Money
In April 2015, Mendeecees stood in a Rochester courtroom and pleaded guilty. He admitted to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and 500 grams or more of cocaine.
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The stakes were high. He was looking at a potential 40 years.
Because he took a plea, the judge eventually sentenced him to 97 months—roughly eight years. But the government didn't just want his time; they wanted his money. As part of the deal, he had to forfeit every dime he made from Love & Hip Hop. We're talking about $170,755 in reality TV earnings and a 2011 Audi R8 worth over $100,000.
Imagine working for years on a hit show just to hand the entire paycheck to the government.
Why the long wait to start the sentence?
You might remember there was a weird gap between his plea and when he actually went away. The judge allowed him to stay out on bail for a while. This gave him time to marry Yandy in that massive, televised wedding special. It was a bittersweet moment for fans, knowing the groom was essentially on a countdown clock to a prison cell.
Life Behind Bars and the Early Release
Mendeecees officially turned himself in in January 2016. He started his bid at FCI Fairton in New Jersey. Prison changes people, or at least that’s what he told the courts later. While he was inside, he wasn't just sitting around. He completed a substance abuse program and took courses in everything from parenting to public speaking.
He wanted out. And he worked for it.
He ended up serving about four years of that eight-year sentence. He got credit for the 15 months he spent in jail before he originally made bail, and the substance abuse program knocked off some time too.
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On January 29, 2020, he finally walked out.
The video of him throwing his prison-issued clothes in a trash can went viral. It was a "never looking back" moment. But it's important to note that his freedom wasn't absolute right away. He had to spend time in a halfway house and under house arrest to finish out the legal requirements.
The Aftermath: Was the Marriage Even Real?
Here is where it gets messy. While Mendeecees was locked up, a bombshell dropped on Love & Hip Hop. Yandy admitted that their lavish 2015 wedding wasn't actually "legal" in the eyes of the law. They never signed the paperwork.
Why?
Because if they were legally married, the government could have potentially gone after Yandy's assets and income to satisfy Mendeecees’s legal debts or forfeitures. It was a tactical move to protect the family's bag while he was away. They eventually made it "official-official" after he came home, but it caused a huge rift with his family and castmates at the time.
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The Takeaway
Mendeecees’s story is a wild mix of "street life" meets "celebrity life." He went to jail because he was part of a major drug ring that fueled addiction in upstate New York. He stayed in the public eye because he had a partner who was willing to hold down the fort (and the cameras) while he was gone.
If you're following his story now, the focus has shifted to his marriage and his life in Atlanta, but that federal case will always be the defining "before and after" of his career.
Next Steps for Understanding the Case:
- Review the Forfeiture Records: If you're interested in how the feds handle reality TV money, look up the Western District of New York’s press release from December 2015. It details exactly how they garnished his VH1 checks.
- Watch the Season 6 Finale: This episode of Love & Hip Hop: New York shows the actual moment he says goodbye to his children to start his sentence. It’s a rare, unscripted look at the emotional toll of a federal sentence.
- Track the Supervised Release: While he is "free," federal convicts usually face years of supervised release. Any slip-up—even a minor one—could technically send someone back to finish their original sentence.