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Singer R Kelly was found guilty of leading a decades-long scheme to recruit women and underage girls for sex in New York on Monday, with the jury declaring him guilty of all nine counts of the racketeering and sex-trafficking charges against him, according to the New York Times.
The jury, consisting of seven men and five women, convicted Kelly of racketeering and eight violations of an anti-sex trafficking law after nine hours of deliberations in federal court in Brooklyn, after beginning its deliberations on Friday afternoon. Kelly faces the possibility of decades in prison; an attorney for Kelly told CNN they are considering filing an appeal and are disappointed in the verdict.
Kelly’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 4, 2022.
The singer sat motionless in the courtroom as the verdict was read, according to the paper. His facial expression was obscured by a mask. The verdict comes 13 years after Kelly was acquitted of child pornography charges in Illinois. He faces further charges in Illinois.
“Today’s guilty verdict forever brands R. Kelly as a predator, who used his fame and fortune to prey on the young, the vulnerable and the voiceless for his own sexual gratification,” Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, acting US attorney from the Eastern District, said outside court after the verdict was read, according to CNN. “He is a predator who used his inner circle to ensnare underage girls and young men and women for decades, in a sordid web of sex abuse, exploitation and humiliation.
“This conviction would not have been possible without the bravery and resilience of R. Kelly’s victims. I applaud their courage in revealing in open court, the painful, intimate and horrific details of their lives with him,” Kasulis continued. “No one deserves what they experienced at his hands or the threats or harassment they faced about telling the truth about what happened to them. We hope that today’s verdict bring some measure of comfort and closure to the victims.”
In the New York trial that began Aug. 18, Kelly faced federal counts of human trafficking, racketeering, child pornography, kidnapping and forced labor. The former music star denied all allegations against him, and pleaded not guilty. During the trial, the prosecution sought to prove that not only is Kelly a predator, but his team has long enabled his behavior.
During closing statements on Wednesday, federal prosecutor Elizabeth Geddes drove home the point that R. Kelly used his fame to take advantage of underaged girls and boys, as well as young women, characterizing the R&B singer as a predator.
“For many years, what happened in the defendant’s world stayed in the defendant’s world,” Geddes said, according to the Times. “But no longer.”
Over the course of the five-week trial, the prosecution brought nine women and two men to the stand to tell their accounts of Kelly’s sexual, physical and mental abuse, along with 34 witnesses, including former employees of Kelly. Kelly will not take the stand. – Variety.com
Online Reporter