R Kelly trial: new charges explained, what did witness tell court, and what is singer’s prison sentence?

R Kelly is currently facing child pornography charges in his hometown of Chicago
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A woman has testified in court that R&B singer R Kelly had sex with her “hundreds” of times before she turned 18 years old, starting when she was 15.

Jane — the pseudonym for the now 37-year-old woman was giving evidence at Kelly’s trial on child pornography and obstruction of justice charges.

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Kelly, who is serving a prison sentence for his conviction in a New York this year on federal charges alleging he used his fame to sexually abuse fans, is standing trial in his hometown of Chicago on several other federal charges.

Kelly was transfered from the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, New York to the Metropolitan Correctional Centre in Chicago in preparation for the trial in which he faces fresh allegations.

R Kelly is facing child pornography charges in his hometown of Chicago, after being sentenced to 30 years in prison by a New York court. (Credit: Getty Images)R Kelly is facing child pornography charges in his hometown of Chicago, after being sentenced to 30 years in prison by a New York court. (Credit: Getty Images)
R Kelly is facing child pornography charges in his hometown of Chicago, after being sentenced to 30 years in prison by a New York court. (Credit: Getty Images)

What charges have been brought against R Kelly in Chicago?

Kelly is standing trial on charges of producing child pornography and enticing minors for sex.

He is also charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice by allegedly rigging a 2008 trial on state child pornography charges stemming from a purported video of him and Jane having sex when she was underage.

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Among other things, prosecutors say Kelly paid off and threatened Jane to ensure that she did not testify at that trial. She did not, and he was ultimately acquitted.

Kelly’s manager Derrel McDavid and his personal assistant Milton “June” Brown, also face charges.

McDavid is accused with assisting Kelly in fixing the 2008 trial, while Brown is accused with receiving child pornography.

All three have pleaded not guilty.

What did key witness tell the court?

The Chicago trial began on 17 August 2022.

The trial began with a statement from a key witness who gave evidence under the pseudonym ‘Jane’. The same witness had refused to give evidence at the 2008 trial.

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Jane, now 37, told the court that she had been groomed by the singer from the age of 13.

She first met Kelly in the late 1990s and visited his Chicago recording studio with her aunt. Her aunt was a singer who worked with Kelly in a professional capacity.

Jane told the court that he first sexually abused her when she was just 14-years-old, when he touched her breasts, adding Kelly, then 30-years-old, first had penetrative sex with her when she was only 15-years-old.

When asked how many times Kelly had intercourse with her over the years, she said: “Uncountable times... Hundreds.”

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Prosecutors alleged that Kelly had told Jane and her family to leave the country, and paid for them to travel to the Bahamas and Cancun, Mexico ahead of the 2008 trial.

It was also heard that the singer had sought to isolate Jane by moving her from hotel to hotel thereafter. After being invited to give evidence at the 2008 trial, Jane’s mother and father denied that she was in the video with Kelly and refused to cooperate with law enforcement at the time.

As a result, the jury in the trial aquitted Kelly on the basis that they did not believe Jane was the girl in the video.

Additionally, it has been accused that Kelly carried a duffel bag filled with videotapes of the sexual abuse wherever he travelled ahead of the 2008 trial, with some of these tapes going missing according to court filings.

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With Kelly facing four counts of enticement of minors for sex, with the four witnesses also expected to appear at the Chicago court to give evidence.

What is R Kelly’s prison sentence?

Although currently undergoing trial in Chicago, Kelly has already been found guilty on multiple counts of sex trafficking and racketeering in New York.

In her written judgement, Judge Ann Donnelly handed down as 30-year prison sentence to Kelly.

In June 2022, it was reported that Kelly’s lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, had filed a notice of appeal against the conviction and 30-year sentence.

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