Kenneth ‘Lil Woody’ Copeland testifies against Young Thug in trial
Young Thug’s former associate Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland testified against the rapper, who faces racketeering, drug and gun charges.
Fox – 5 Atlanta
Young Thug’s probation may be in jeopardy, with prosecutors alleging he engaged in “threatening” behavior, according to reports.
The Atlanta-based rapper, whose trial on gun and racketeering charges was the longest in Georgia history, could have his probation revoked after a motion filed Wednesday by the Fulton County DA’s office alleged he posed a danger to the community.
USA TODAY has reached out to the DA’s office and representatives for Young Thug for comment.
In the motion, shared by Channel 2 Action news and in reports from The Atlanta Journal Constitution, prosecutors allege the rapper, whose real name is Jeffery Williams, “demonstrated a blatant disregard for the law” by using his social media to publicly expose the identity of an investigator in the district attorney’s office.
In a post to his X account Wednesday, Williams seemingly responded to the motion, writing: “I don’t make treats (sic) to people I’m a good person, I would never condone anyone threatening anyone or definitely participate in threatening anyone. I’m all about peace and love.”
Williams, who pleaded guilty in October to racketeering charges, avoided prison time when a judge sentenced him to 15 years of probation to account for time already served. On top of that 15 years, the judge ordered a “backloaded” 20 years, a sentence to be served in custody if the rapper did not complete his probation.
That prison time now looms as prosecutors allege Williams’ “continued presence in the community under probationary supervision presents a clear and present danger to public safety and undermines the rule of law.”
Williams, who was originally tried alongside other members of YSL, which prosecutors alleged is a violent street gang, is accused of recirculating a social media post from a blogger that revealed the identity of Marissa Viverito, an investigator currently testifying in a hearing over a multi-defendant gang murder.
The court had explicitly outlined that the identity of witnesses should be kept confidential but the blogger posted a photo of Viverito anyway, according to the motion, alongside the caption: “She doesn’t want to be shown on screen? Well, here she is.”
Williams then reposted the image Tuesday, prosecutors allege, with his own caption reading: “Marissa Viverito is the biggest liar in the DA’s office.” The post quickly went viral, the motion says, collecting over 2 million views along with large numbers of comments and likes.
The motion says the rapper’s post resulted in direct danger for Viverito, whose home address was outed, and District Attorney Fani Willis, who was threatened with assassination.
“The escalation from targeting a testifying witness to making a direct threat against the elected District Attorney of Fulton County is a grave and unprecedented attack on the justice system,” prosecutors wrote.
Contributing: Edward Segarra