The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune News Editor

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

COMEDIAN Khing Kloud was acquitted yesterday of voyeurism and intentional libel after his accuser failed to show up for trial, ending what he said was an emotionally distressing saga that diminished his career and robbed him of economic opportunities.

He claimed he would sue the complainant and authorities for having him prosecuted.

His lawyer, Alphonso Lewis III, told The Tribune that the judge, Magistrate Shaka Serville, acquitted his client instead of discharging him, ensuring proceedings cannot be brought against him again in the same matter.

The comedian, whose real name is Terrance Gilbert II, was charged last year after his accuser claimed he secretly filmed her performing oral sex on him on March 23, 2022, then leaked the recording on May 5, 2022.

 He said the virtual complainant failed to show up to court eight times, leading to the continuous adjournment of the case before his acquittal. He said the prosecutor revealed yesterday that the woman had moved abroad and, according to her mother, had no cell phone.

 Mr Gilbert said he was arrested and kept in custody for almost four days in 2022.

 He said at one point at the Central Detective Unit, he sat across from the virtual complainant and her mother as police showed them the explicit video.

 “I’ve never seen this young lady in my entire life,” he claimed. “Like, ma’am, who are you?”

 He said police showed them a seven-second video of the girl performing oral sex on a man.

 “In the video, it was just her, like from the neck up, and it was just a male private part,” he said. “The guy never talked, he never moaned, he never scanned the room, nothing. That’s all it was, and I was arrested on that.”

 He said he looked “high and low” for the video, but never found or saw it again.

 “If it was out in the world on planet Earth, I woulda saw it,” he said, suggesting the video was never circulated.

 “We crack jokes in the courtroom saying the only people want to see this is the police because ain nobody else have it.”

 He claimed police made no meaningful effort to confirm he was the man in the clip, but secured a warrant to search for and check his electronic devices, which he said revealed nothing helpful to their case.

 He believes he was charged just on the word of the complainant.

 He said he was arrested as he was about to embrace “an opportunity of a lifetime” in Canada to host comedy events abroad.

 He said the publicity of the matter caused companies to cancel events with him and people to cut ties with him.

 “Over like 20 to 30 different brands and services and companies were like, hey, you know Kloud, I’ll just go with the other guys,” he said.

 He said he used to publish three or more comedy videos a week but his output dropped dramatically after he was arrested and charged.

 “I’m not going to say I’m depressed,” he said, “but it’s like most places I turn, people be like, ‘bey Kloud send me the video, bey.’ People always asking me that. When people ask me that, oh man, I is get mad.”

 He said the best thing about the ordeal is that he found a 9 to 5 job.

 Untested sexual misconduct allegations about him swirled before his voyeurism charge.

 Asked about this, he said the claims were unsubstantiated and no criminal case was brought against him. 

 “Every rumour or sip-sip you hear about Khing Kloud, turn around and say show me the proof,” he said. “I bet you every dollar in my bank account they can’t show you nothing. I don’t know how this became a wave, but all of these weird allegations when it comes to sex and females and blah blah blah, all of those stuff were ever bogus from day one.

 “All that is, is just females who is salty and mad and tryna get a come up for some apparent reason because every time I am involved in something when it comes to a female, nothing ever comes out of it.”