Tekashi 6ix9ine taken to hospital after being attacked in gym sauna

Footage shows rapper lying on the floor being attacked

Controversial rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine was taken to a hospital after being assaulted inside a gym sauna in Florida, police say.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said the 26-year-old FEFE MC – real name Daniel Hernandez – said the assault involved several individuals.

A video containing graphic footage of the incident has been published by TMZ. In it, Hernandez is seen lying on the floor, defending his face as at least two assailants hit him. One of them can be heard saying: “Take a picture, I’m gonna be famous now.”

The outlet also obtained pictures of the rapper in hospital, which show cuts and bruises on his face.

In a statement to NBC News, Hernandez’s attorney, Lance Lazzaro, said the rapper was attacked in the sauna by “three or four thugs who beat him up”.

“Employees heard the disturbance and the perpetrators fled,” Lazzaro said. “Police in South Florida were called and he was transported via ambulance to a local hospital.”

Detectives from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the incident.

Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine (Getty Images)

In 2015, Hernandez was sentenced to four years probation after admitting to a felony count of using a child in a sexual performance in relation to a video of a 13-year-old girl.

In 2018, Hernandez was arrested for racketeering, attempted murder and several weapons charges. He pleaded guilty but his sentence was shortened to two years after he testified against members of the Nine Trey Gangsters gang, which operates on the East Coast of the US.

Last year, the rapper told a judge that he was “struggling to make ends meet” in response to a lawsuit brought against him by victims of a 2018 robbery he was present for.

His accountant, Justin Kobay, claimed that 6ix9ine’s net worth stands at “technically less than zero”.

6ix9ine also admitted to being in fear for his life, after testifying against Nine Trey.

“I will never lead a normal life since my cooperation made me a target for Nine Trey as well as other gangs,” he said, according to the court documents. “I live with that fear every day.”

A three-part documentary series, Supervillain: The Making of Tekashi 6ix9ine, was released on Showtime in the US last year.

In interviews promoting the project, director Karam Gill, who did not meet 6ix9ine, called the rapper a “horrible human being”.