A key prosecution witness in the YSL RICO trial claims he was lying on Young Thug when he previously told police about the rapper’s alleged involvement in crimes.
Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland Testifies He Lied on Young Thug
On Monday (Aug. 12), the YSL RICO trial resumed after a nearly two-month recess with a new judge, Page Reese Whitaker, now presiding over the case. The trial continued with the testimony of controversial key prosecution witness Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland who decided to testify after notifying the Court that he’d take the stand depending on his mood.
During the trial, Copeland became hostile while being questioned by the prosecution about claims he made to the police about crimes the Atlanta rapper committed in 2015.
“I don’t recall none of that,” Copeland responded when asked to address his previous claims. “I just know every time police was after me and trying to get me, they kept bringing [Young Thug’s] name up and I knew they had me with what I had. So, I was like ‘Yea, yea, yea, yea. Whatever y’all want me to say I will say it.'”
“That’s why they kept coming after me because they felt like they could make a case out of him or whatever they are trying to do,” an agitated Copeland continued. “So they knew that, ‘OK, we gon’ get Woody today, he gon’ have something to say about Thug.’ It’s wrong. And y’all wrong because y’all know that I’m full of sh*t. And y’all keep trying to drag me in here to bring up bullish*t that y’all know I done said. Why is y’all doing that. Leave me alone.”
At one point during the testimony, Copeland was deemed a hostile witness.
On Aug. 9, Judge Whitaker instructed the jury to disregard Copeland’s previous testimony as he did not have proper legal representation.
XXL has reached out to Young Thug’s attorney for comment.
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Lil Woody’s Testimony Drags On
Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland’s testimony has been the focus of the trial for the last several weeks. Back on June 7, he was sentenced to spend a weekend in jail after he refused to testify. Following a meeting with prosecutors and the judge, Copeland decided to continue his testimony but has been contentious with prosecutors at every turn. On June 12, he fired his own attorney.
Copeland was supposed to be the prosecution’s key witness as on multiple occasions he told police about alleged crimes involving Young Thug. In 2021, he was interrogated after getting arrested for a gun and told police about an alleged murder plot involving Thug.
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See Kenneth “Lil Woody” Copeland’s contentious testimony below.