R. Kelly Convicted of Racketeering and Sex Trafficking
After two days of deliberations, 54 year old R&B singer R Kelly has been found guilty on all charges of racketeering and sex trafficking. The verdict was read this afternoon in a Brooklyn federal Court, by Judge Ann Donnelly. The charges includes one count of racketeering, which has 14 underlying acts that includes kidnapping, bribery, sex trafficking and forced labor. Kelly has also been charged with eight counts of violating the Mann Act. The Mann Act makes it illegal to transport anyone across state lines for any immoral purpose. Kelly was found guilty on all counts, but found not guilty of three racketeering acts that were related to radio intern, that accused him of drugging and sexually assaulting her.
R Kelly’s The Trial
Kelly’s trial lasted almost seven weeks. The jury consisted of seven men and five women. The federal prosecutors were able to successfully prove to the jury that Kelly was indeed the head of a criminal enterprise. He employed a number of people including bodyguards, to lure girls, boys and women to him for his sexual gratification. Throughout the trial, a total of 50 witnesses testified. Five of those witnesses were victims. There was a sixth victim identified as the late R&B singer Aaliyah, who died in a plane crash on August 25, 2001.
R&B Singer Aaliyah Identified as R. Kelly’s 6th Victim
Aaliyah was at the forefront of the trial. A witness told the jury that she witnessed R. Kelly performing a sexual act on Aaliyah when she was just 14 years old. This was said to have happened a year before Kelly illegally married her at the age of 15. It was said that Kelly bribed a government worker into getting Aaliyah a fake identification card so that he could secretly marry Aaliyah, who he thought was pregnant with his child at the time.
Testimony
According to the accuser’s testimony in court, they were ordered to call Kelly “Daddy.” They were locked in rooms and had to get permission to leave out and use the bathroom. They were subjected to threats, punishments, violent spankings, and perverse and sadistic acts. Kelly forced one accuser to give him oral sex as he kept a gun by his side. He forced the accusers to have sex with others, as he videotaped the acts. Some of the victims claimed that Kelly gave them herpes without disclosing the fact that he had the STD.
“Mr. Kelly is the Worst
Gloria Allred, an attorney who represented three of the six accusers has been practicing law for 47 years. She said that she has pursued many predators that have committed crimes against women and children. However, of all the predators that she has pursued, Kelly is the worst. Allred is the same high profile attorney that represented 28 of the women who accused Bill Cosby. She also represented an accuser of Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein’s career ended after allegations of rape and other criminal sexual misconduct.
Decades of Allegations
The Guilty verdict comes 13 years after Kelly was acquitted of child pornography charges at an Illinois State trial. There has been more than 25 years of accusations against R. Kelly. His arrest came about after an agent saw the “Surviving R. Kelly docuseries that detailed decades of sexual abuse allegations against R. Kelly. The allegations included him urinating on a 14 year old girl in a widely circulated video. The women used their voices to speak up against Kelly, and it has led to a conviction.
R Kelly Denies All Charges
After the “Surviving R Kelly docuseries aired, Kelly broke his silence in an interview with “CBS This Morning” host Gayle King. During the interview, Kelly became emotional an unhinged. He claimed that he had been “assassinated”, and “buried alive.” Now that Kelly has been convicted on all charges, he faces up to 20 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for May 4, 2022. An attorney for Kelly has said that they are considering filing an appeal, and are disappointed in the verdict. Kelly faces separate charges in Federal court in Chicago, where he was indicted by the state attorney in February 2019, for aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving four victims, three of whom were minors. Kelly also faces assault and state charges in Minnesota. He was charged in 2019 with engaging in prostitution with a minor.
Written by chi_journalist
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