Young Thug Associate Lil Woody Arrested For Failure To Testify During RICO Trial

Young Thug’s YSL RICO trial continues to make headlines. Thugger’s former associate Lil Woody (real name Kenneth Copeland) has been arrested for contempt, despite previously being granted immunity, following a heated court hearing.

On Friday (June 7), Woody was taken into custody after he invoked his Fifth Amendment right and refused to testify against Young Thug. Though a portion of his testimony from his 2021 felony arrest that was given to authorities was leaked through the media, Copeland refused to cooperate with the prosecution once he took the stand, resulting in a tense exchange.

“I’m grown. I’m an adult,” Copeland replied when asked to confirm how old he was. “I take the fifth.” Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Ural Glanville then ordered Copeland to be held in willful contempt until June 10, since the prosecution had already granted immunity.

“I just want to make sure that you understand,” Glanville said. “If you don’t testify, then I as the judge in this case have several remedies. One of those is that I can hold you in contempt and jail you because the way that you get out of that contempt is to just testify.”

Copeland was originally arrested in Fulton County in October 2021 after being found with a loaded gun during a traffic stop. It was at the time Copeland reportedly divulged incriminating details about crimes committed by YSL and committed to obtaining a confession from Young Thug.

Brad Steel, Young Thug’s attorney, attempted to move for a mistrial on the grounds that it was known that the witness would plead the Fifth, however Glanville struck the motion down.

According to a fan page on Twitter (X), Copeland shared several posts on social media following the incident, which also reportedly confirmed his plan to plead the fifth once he took the stand.

“I’m good stop calling me I ain’t crying at all f## em,” Copeland wrote in an Instagram Story post. “This my last jail time I love y’all and I have to take this trip my head high nobody didn’t force me to and imma be okay God didn’t bring me this far for nothing it is what it is I’ll be okay.”

Young Thug has been in jail since he was arrested in May 2022 after being named among more than two dozen defendants indicted in the RICO case. YSL recording artist Gunna pleaded guilty in December 2022 to a single charge of racketeering.

Check out the video of the hearing, which includes the incident with Copeland, below.