Young Thug was denied release from Atlanta jail Wednesday on new charges over drugs and illegal firearms, complicating efforts to free the rapper while he awaits trial in a more sweeping case against dozens of alleged gang members.
Court records show that a Fulton County judge denied bond over the new charges, which were tacked onto Young Thug’s rap sheet based on items found in his home during his arrest on Monday. The new counts include possession of drugs and unidentified illegal guns, such as a machine gun.
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The chart-topping rapper, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, has not yet had such a bond hearing in the separate, more sweeping case unveiled Monday. That case accuses the rapper – and dozens of others – of conspiracy to violate the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act through alleged involvement in violent street gang called Young Slime Life.
It’s unclear where the decision leaves Young Thug’s efforts to avoid jail while awaiting trial. The new charges are technically separate from the RICO case, and it’s not clear whether the judge overseeing the newer charges would change his mind if Young Thug is later granted bond in the bigger case. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the original 88-page indictment released Monday, prosecutors claimed Young Thug, Gunna and 26 others were alleged members YSL committed a wide-range of crimes over the past decade, including murder, carjacking, armed robbery, drug dealing and illegal firearm possession. Prosecutors say the group wrought “havoc” in Atlanta over the past decade.
In particular, the indictment claims that Young Thug rented a car that was used in the 2015 drive-by shooting that killed 26-year-old Donovan Thomas and wounded two others. The case also alleges that other YSL members sought permission from Young Thug before they attempted to murder rival rapper YFN Lucci in prison.
Young Thug was arrested on Monday. Gunna was booked in jail Wednesday morning. Other alleged YSL members have also been arrested, but a number have still not been taken into custody.
Young Thug’s attorney has said that his client “committed no crime whatsoever” and would strongly fight the charges. Attorneys for Gunna have said the rapper is “innocent” and that the indictment “falsely portrays his music as part of criminal conspiracy.”
