Young Thug Faced With Host Of New Charges, Heightens Gang Leader Accusations

Young Thug, formally known as Jeffery Williams, is facing another set of charges relating to past claims about him being a criminal street gang leader for years.

You may recall that the American rapper was arrested earlier in May on gang-related charges while also being among 28 people associated with YSL and charged in a 56-count RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) indictment. As WSBTV reported, the latest charges are not against Thug alone but four other defendants, which arose from past apprehensions on March 17 and May 9.

The Fulton County D.A.'s office in Atlanta recently revealed that a new indictment brought the new charges against Thug, believing that they add to the prosecution's claims about his affiliation with gangs. Speaking of the claims, it was previously reported in May that the rapper's legal rep Brian Steel insisted on his client's innocence and promised to battle out the accusations till he was exonerated.

Steel said at the time, "I'll tell you the response to any allegation is Mr. Williams committed no crime whatsoever, and we will fight to my last drop of blood to clear him." It should be noted that the past indictment in May charged Thug and others with conspiracy to violate the RICO act. He was also accused then of participating in criminal street gang activity.

As for the new charges, the D.A. Fani Willis' office stated that it includes the 28 defendants from the May indictment and is still centered on YSL, an organization reportedly founded by Thug and two others. Willis stressed that YSL was an acronym for "Young Slime Life" and "a hybrid gang" that operated in Atlanta, also "an affiliate of the Bloods gang."

The majority of the charges against the 30-year-old songwriter and two of the other defendants arose from what the D.A.'s office and Atlanta police found in Thug's home on Allison Drive in Buckhead the night of his May arrest. The indictment comprises "a new gang charge, new drug charges, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and possession of a machine gun."

Prosecutor Don Geary mentioned that the other two defendants, Martinez Arnold and Deamonte Kendrick, also known as Yak Gotti, involved in the machine gun count, have both pleaded guilty to the May indictment, same with Thug. Meanwhile, Yak Gotti's lawyer, Jay Abt, said his client anticipated his day in court and was not guilty of any of the charges. He maintained that Gotti was not a criminal but a triple platinum recording artist who rapped about the lives of urban youth.

Arnold, on the other hand, is represented by defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant who looked forward to contesting the new charges in court. Merchant was confident that her client would not be convicted of the initial charges and would be pleading not guilty to the new charges as he did not live on Allison Drive.

Regarding the original indictment in May, The Blast made a report at the time, noting that Thug was taken into custody at the Fulton County Jail, facing multiple charges. Among the accusations was a conspiracy charge for attempting to go against the RICO act in 2013 and another charge for allegedly participating in criminal street gang activities in May 2018. Additionally, the 28 people listed in the arraignment included the songster's brother UNfook as well as friend and fellow music star Gunna who are associated with the record label YSL.

Since Thug's apprehension, he has received tons of support from fans globally, and he returned the favor with an appreciation message from jail via Summer Jam. The Blast shared that Summer Jam is a yearly hip-hop festival hosted by famous radio station Hot 97FM in New York, usually held in June and featuring renowned hip-hop stars to provide fans with remarkable live performances.

Thug was set to perform in this year's edition; however, due to his arrest, he was absent but compensated by sending an audio message, thanking his fans for their unending support. He hailed his fans via the message and said, "I just want to say thank you to all my friends and my family for coming out and supporting us. You know your support during this time means a lot to us."