Offset Ordered to Complete 50 Hours of Community Service Over Dispensary Guard Altercation

Offset will not serve any jail time on a misdemeanor assault charge connected to a confrontation with a security guard at a Los Angeles marijuana dispensary, after a judge signed off on a diversion agreement that could ultimately wipe the case from his record.

A Los Angeles judge granted the Migos rapper's request to enter a pretrial diversion program at a July 15 hearing, according to court documents. The rapper, whose legal name is Kiari Cephus, did not appear at the hearing.

Under the agreement, prosecutors will drop the criminal charge if Cephus completes 50 hours of community service, finishes an anger management course, and stays out of legal trouble for the next year.

Cephus had originally proposed a six-month diversion period, but the judge extended that timeline to a full 12 months. Even with the longer requirement, the outcome represented a victory for the rapper's legal team, since prosecutors had pushed back against any diversion deal and wanted the case sent to trial instead.

The charge stems from a March 13, 2025 incident at a MedMen dispensary near Los Angeles International Airport. According to an LAPD narrative cited in court filings, Cephus declined to hand over identification when asked by a security guard and instead questioned whether the guard recognized him. When the guard asked a second time for ID, prosecutors say Cephus shoved him in the chest and then struck him in the face with a closed fist. The guard responded by using pepper spray, and Cephus left the scene shortly afterward.

Prosecutors argued against granting diversion, calling the confrontation a violent crime against the victim in their written opposition to the motion.

Cephus's attorney, Christy O'Connor, pushed back on that characterization in her own filing, noting that more than a year had passed since what she described as an embarrassing episode her client now regrets, and that Cephus has since stayed out of trouble while supporting himself and his children.

The defense also offered a detailed account of Cephus's upbringing, noting he was raised by a single mother in Atlanta without a father figure and had to find his own path growing up. Beyond that biographical detail, the defense motion took direct aim at the guard's credibility, pointing to security footage that allegedly shows him back at his post moments after the alleged assault, checking IDs and interacting normally with coworkers.

The filing claims the guard showed no visible signs of injury and only requested medical attention after learning from a colleague that he had just clashed with a well-known musician.

That guard, identified in court records as Jim Leobardo Sanchez, filed a civil lawsuit against Cephus last October separate from the criminal case. Sanchez's complaint alleges that Cephus grew hostile and confrontational without provocation before striking him in the face, and claims that several people traveling with the rapper then joined in, grabbing and pushing him as well.

Sanchez says the altercation left him in significant pain and triggered ongoing headaches and neck discomfort. According to the filing, paramedics treated him at the scene before he was taken to a hospital for further care, and he continues to deal with lingering symptoms tied to the incident.

The civil suit is scheduled for a hearing on Aug. 5, a date that will determine how the separate legal proceedings against Cephus move forward outside the now-resolved criminal matter.