A federal judge in Atlanta has ordered rapper Ca$h Out to pay $40 million to a woman who says he trafficked and abused her, after he failed to respond or defend himself in the civil lawsuit.

In a default judgment issued Jan. 7, U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash Jr. ruled that John Michael Hakeem Gibson, also known as Ca$h Out, must pay $10 million in compensatory damages and $30 million in punitive damages to the plaintiff, identified in court records as J.M. The ruling came after Gibson did not file an answer or otherwise participate in the case.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, a federal law that allows victims of sex trafficking to seek civil damages. According to court filings, J.M. alleged she was trafficked by Gibson between 2013 and 2015.

Court records show the case had been paused while criminal proceedings against Gibson played out in state court. In July 2025, a Fulton County jury found Gibson guilty on multiple charges, including racketeering, rape, aggravated sodomy, sex trafficking, pimping, pandering, and firearm possession during the commission of a felony, among others. He was sentenced to life plus 70 years in prison, according to sentencing documents included in the federal filing.

After the criminal case concluded, the federal court lifted the stay and allowed the civil case to move forward. Because Gibson never responded to the lawsuit, the judge entered a default judgment in favor of the plaintiff.

The court's order states that the $10 million award is intended to compensate the victim for the harm she suffered, while the additional $30 million is meant to punish the defendant and deter similar conduct.