U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly has dropped the hammer on R. Kelly, handing the fallen music star a sentence of 30 years in prison for racketeering and sex trafficking charges.
Kelly did not address the court during the nearly three-hour hearing.
His victims did speak in court. “You made me do things that broke my spirit.
“I literally wished I would die because of how low you made me feel,” one woman said.
“Do you remember that?”
Another woman said through sobs: “I once lost hope,” before trying to address the court and prosecutors and saying, “but you restored my faith.”
“I was afraid, naive and didn’t know to handle the situation.
“Silence is a very lonely place.”
According to Fox News:
“The “I Believe I Can Fly” singer was convicted on one count of racketeering.
“The racketeering includes 14 underlying acts of sexual exploitation of a child, kidnapping, bribery, and sex trafficking charges.
“R. Kelly was also convicted on eight violations of the Mann Act.
“The legislation makes it illegal to transport people across state lines for “immoral purposes.”
Prosecutors said Kelly should receive at least 25 years in prison saying he used his “fame, money and popularity” to systematically “prey upon children and young women for his own sexual gratification.”
“He continued his crimes and avoided punishment for them for almost 30 years and must now be held to account,” prosecutors wrote.
From The AP:
The Brooklyn federal court jury convicted him after hearing that he used his entourage of managers and aides to meet girls and keep them obedient, an operation that prosecutors said amounted to a criminal enterprise.
Kelly, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, used his “fame, money and popularity” to systematically “prey upon children and young women for his own sexual gratification,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing earlier this month.
Several accusers testified that Kelly subjected them to perverse and sadistic whims when they were underage.
The accusers alleged they were ordered to sign nondisclosure forms and were subjected to threats and punishments such as violent spankings if they broke what one referred to as “Rob’s rules.”
Some said they believed the videotapes he shot of them having sex would be used against them if they exposed what was happening.
According to testimony, Kelly gave several accusers herpes without disclosing he had an STD, coerced a teenage boy to join him for sex with a naked girl who emerged from underneath a boxing ring in his garage, and shot a shaming video that showed one victim smearing feces on her face as punishment for breaking his rules.
Kelly has denied any wrongdoing.
BREAKING: R&B singer R. Kelly has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for using his superstardom to subject young fans — some just children — to systematic sexual abuse. https://t.co/63L9C6w8xq
— The Associated Press (@AP) June 29, 2022
Breaking news: R&B star R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Wednesday for charges related to nearly 30 years’ worth of allegations that he physically and sexually abused women and minors. https://t.co/7yzf6bdjkL pic.twitter.com/OuUelYBOED
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) June 29, 2022
