Young Thug trial – live: Opening statements loom in YSL Rico case

27 Nov 2023 • 7:56 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

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The hotly-anticipated trial of the rapper Young Thug is about to get under way in a courtroom in Atlanta, Georgia, following almost a year of delays.

Back in May 2022, Young Thug, real name Jeffery Williams, was arrested and charged in a sprawling RICO indictment along with 27 other defendants.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis – who is using the same law to prosecute Donald Trump over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election in the state – accused the suspects of being part of a criminal street gang named YSL.

According to prosecutors, the gang is responsible for a series of violent crims, including murders, shootings, carjackings and racketeering.

Young Thug has denied the accusations and insisted that YSL is simply Young Thug’s record label – Young Slime Life.

After several defendants took plea deals or had their cases severed, the Grammy Award-winning rapper and five others are finally going on trial.

Opening statements are set to begin in the case on Monday.