Singer R Kelly was found guilty of leading an organized crime and sex trafficking scheme that abused women and children of color. He pleaded guilty to nine counts after decades of evading criminal responsibility.
The 54-year-old, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, was accused of running a Chicago-based criminal scheme that recruited women and children who were subjected to unwanted sex and mental abuse. Numerous witnesses said Kelly had forced them to obey perverted and brutal whims when they were minors in a scheme that spanned more than two decades.
Kelly, best known for his 1996 hit "Believe I Can Fly", could face up to 20 years in prison. The sentence is set for May 4. He denied any wrongdoing.
The allegations against Kelly received a lot of attention after the 2019 documentary "Lifetime Surviving R Kelly", which explored claims that many people defended Kelly and forced his victims to remain silent for decades.
Months after the release of the documentary, Kelly was arrested in July 2019 on charges of blackmail and violation of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transportation of women or girls for prostitution.
Referring to the investigations, Kelly exercised power over the victims and dominated and controlled them physically, sexually and psychologically. He abused victims if they violated "rules", which often included permission to use the toilet, to eat, to make phone calls.
In a Buzzfeed News investigation five years ago, victims accused him of "brainwashing" girls and women and then turning them into a "cult" as their parents called him. It was said that he dictated to them how to dress, how to behave, how to eat, he treated them like dolls controlling their minds.
The court ruled that there were "cruel and humiliating sentences" for violating the rules, including beatings and violent beatings. Kelly forced his victims not to speak through fear, blackmailing them with embarrassing information or photos and videos.
