A blogger-turned-star witness in the federal trial surrounding the brazen killing of rapper FBG Duck claimed Monday that he initially became an FBI informant when he was arrested by corrupt Chicago Police Sgt. Ronald Watts more than a decade ago.
The bombshell statement came during Martell Wiley’s second day of dizzying testimony at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse, where he sparred with defense attorneys who noted there was no evidence he had actually cooperated against Watts.
Wiley, who runs the popular Trenches News YouTube channel, claimed he started working with the FBI in 2006 when he was arrested by Watts, who was sentenced to 22 months in federal prison for stealing what he believed was drug money from a federal informant.
Watts’ alleged corruption has led Cook County prosecutors to throw out more than 200 convictions linked to the unit he led, which has been accused of extorting money from drug dealers at the former Ida B. Wells Homes and falsely arresting those who wouldn’t cooperate.
“He asked me, did I want to go to jail, or did I want my money?” Wiley claimed. “I said, I’ll go to jail. He took me to jail. I got up with the feds as soon as I got out.”
During a conference without jurors present, defense attorneys said there was no documentation of Wiley’s purported cooperation dating that far back. Cook County court records show he wasn’t charged with a crime in 2006, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Julien acknowledged that prosecutors had no corresponding FBI records from that year.
Julien, who has remained calm during the trial’s most tense moments, became animated when defense attorneys pressed for more information, insisting it wasn’t surprising that a “crooked cop” didn’t properly record an arrest.
Julien ultimately noted that Wiley had mentioned something similar to FBI agents, and Judge Martha Pacold found it wasn’t “realistic or feasible” to delay his testimony.
Wiley said he reached out and offered to help law enforcement hours after FBG Duck was killed on Aug. 4, 2020. Wiley described Duck, real name Carlton Weekly, as a friend.
On trial are six alleged members and associates of the O Block set of the Black Disciples: Marcus Smart, 24; Christopher Thomas, 24; Kenneth Roberson, 30; Charles Liggins, 32; Tacarlos Offerd, 32; and Ralph Turpin, 34.
Wiley repeatedly said he couldn’t remember the nearly $25,000 the FBI paid him for his cooperation, questioning his handler’s account and claiming only that he got money to relocate and get around.
He also couldn’t recall working with the FBI in 2008 and 2011, despite attorneys referencing documentation showing he had cooperated then. He claimed a gunshot wound to the head in 2004 continues to affect his memory.
In a series of contentious exchanges with defense attorneys, the convicted felon acknowledged that he earned money from his YouTube channel, a book he’s written and from booking interviews with other rap-centric media outlets.
During one line of questioning about his honesty, he said he sometimes manufactures “clickbait” and that he filmed a “skit” in a fake courtroom, claiming he was testifying in the trial at Dirksen.
Wiley also appeared to admit that he carried a gun after the jury was shown pictures of what appeared to be him holding a weapon — just days after he said he built his online brand on teaching kids not to tote firearms.
“That don’t mean I’m going out there spraying people. That don’t mean that I’m going out there playing God,” he said. “Just because I’m a felon, I keep a weapon on me. … Do you see the s—- that’s happening?”
Throughout Monday’s testimony, Wiley’s credibility took hit after hit as the defense sought to undercut his earlier claims that O Block is an organized criminal enterprise and his positive identifications of some of the defendants.
“You’re trying to bash me,” he said. “But in the end, it’s not going to help you.”
