Robert Kelly Found Guilty Of Racketeering In Sex Trafficking Trial

 

NEW YORK : A jury has found R&B superstar R. Kelly guilty on racketeering and sex trafficking charges after a trial where the prosecution portrayed the 54- year- old singer as a heartless predator who preyed upon young Black girls and women.

The panel of seven men and five women had begun deliberating the charges on Friday afternoon after prosecutors and defense attorneys finished their closing arguments at the end of a grueling trial of often shocking testimony.

He is accused of running a Chicago-based criminal enterprise that recruited his accusers for unwanted sex and mental torment. Multiple witnesses said Kelly had subjected them to perverse and brutal whims when they were underage in a scheme that stretched back more than two decades. Meanwhile , he  had denied any wrongdoing.

The charges were based on an argument that the entourage of managers and aides who helped the singer meet girls — and keep them obedient and quiet — amounted to a criminal enterprise.

His accusers’ stories received wide exposure after the 2019 Lifetime documentary Surviving R Kelly. It explored claims that an entourage of supporters protected Kelly and silenced his victims for decades.