Georgia’s longest-running criminal trial has finally come to a close. On Thursday (Oct. 31), Young Thug pleaded no contest to RICO and gang leader charges during his high-profile case, which began a little over a year ago following his arrest in May 2022. Superior Court Judge Paige Whitaker sentenced him to five years of time served on several counts, 15 years of probation, and 20 years to be served in custody that will be commuted upon successful completion of the probation.

Prosecutors initially recommended a more severe sentence of 45 years — 25 in prison and 20 on probation — had the plea deal not been reached. Fortunately, the “Digits” hitmaker’s attorney, Brian Steel, countered with a detailed rebuttal and called for leniency. Standing in court, Thug said, “I take responsibility for my crimes.”

“I want to say sorry to my family [and] my mom. My mom [has] 11 kids; I can’t say all their names. My managers, my kids that aren’t here, really everybody that [has] something to do with this situation, I want to say sorry for having so much time invested into this,” he continued. “I am a smart guy. I am a good guy, and I really [have] a good heart.”

Elsewhere, Whitaker encouraged the JEFFERY artist to use his platform to positively impact the youth moving forward. She stated, “I know you’re talented, and if you choose to continue to rap, you need to try to use your influence to let kids know that is not the way to go and that there are ways out of poverty besides hooking up with the powerful guy at the end of the street selling drugs.”

Originally, prosecutors accused Thug of leading a criminal street gang linked to murder and various violent crimes in Atlanta since 2015. Several other defendants, such as frequent collaborator Gunna, either accepted plea deals or were completely removed from the trial.

In the days before Thug’s final verdict, two defendants accepted plea deals, whereas YSL Records signee Yak Gotti chose to take his case to a jury trial.