The Fulton County Sheriff has added extra security to protect himself and his family after receiving a barrage of death threats from associates and fans of Young Thug.
Sheriff Patrick Labat revealed that his life and his wife are being targeted after Young Thug, Gunna, and 26 of their YSL associates were taken into custody in May and charged with 56 counts of racketeering.
“I signed up for this. My family certainly did not. We will not allow anybody to partake in cyberbullying and/or make threats, and there are continuing investigations that will reveal other threats,” Sheriff Labat told 11 Alive. “We think it’s getting related and at least fanbase related.”
The news comes on the heels of the arrest of a teenager named Quantavius Mender.
Last week, the 18-year-old was arrested and charged with 23 counts of making terrorist threats for saying he planned to kill Sheriff Labat and his wife if Young Thug and other YSL members were not freed immediately.
The teen’s mother and sister revealed that Mender is suffering from mental illness and should not be locked in a “dog cage.”
Quantavius Mender is the cousin of Tenquarius Mender, AKA “Nard” or “Stunna,” who is one of the 28 gang members charged in the 88-page indictment.
Despite the family ties, Quantavious Mender’s mother and sister said he was not close with his cousin, has no affiliations with YSL, and has never met Young Thug in his life.
In fact, the teenager is suffering from bipolar disorder and needs medical help.
“He’s not a hitman. He’s not a gang member. He’s not any of these things that they’re trying to portray him. He needs to get mental health help and not a dog cage. He’s just a teenage boy, was goofing off, made a bad mistake,” Mender’s mother, Malaika Kulenga said.
However, Sheriff Labat offered a stern warning to anyone else thinking threatening his life will be taken lightly.
“When you cross the line, and you threaten my family, that’s a very grave mistake,” the sheriff said.