North Fulton Today

An Atlanta judge has again denied bond for local rap star Gunna on gang-related charges, meaning he will remain behind bars for the foreseeable future.

According to Fox 5 News, Gunna, whose real name is Sergio Kitchens, has been in jail since May after being named in a RICO Act indictment that charges he and others, including fellow Atlanta rapper Young Thug, are among the leaders of the local Young Slime Life street gang.

Even as the two rap stars have maintained their innocence, the indictment claims they are linked to drug and weapon trafficking across the state, with some of the others named in the filing now even facing murder charges that prosecutors argue are highlighted in some of their rap lyrics.

First signed into law and enacted in 1970 under then President Richard Nixon, The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, was developed to fight organized crime, drawing from a list of 27 federal crimes and eight state crimes that can include fraud, theft, computer crimes, embezzlement, credit scams, human trafficking and money laundering.

Georgia is one of 33 states that has its own RICO statutes.