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A US Federal Appeals Court has upheld R. Kelly’s sex trafficking and racketeering conviction, ruling that extensive evidence supports his decades-long prison sentence.
The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan rejected Kelly’s argument that prosecutors failed to prove he led a racketeering scheme that involved recruiting women and underage girls for sex.
Circuit Judge Denny Chin, writing for a three-judge panel, stated that prosecutors presented “extensive evidence showing how Kelly ensnared young girls and women into his orbit, endeavored to control their lives, and secured their compliance with his personal and sexual demands through verbal and physical abuse, threats of blackmail, and humiliation.”
Chin added that jurors could reasonably conclude Kelly intended to make victims believe they would face harm if they did not comply.
Kelly’s lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, criticised the ruling, arguing that it improperly expanded the scope of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). She indicated that Kelly may appeal to the US Supreme Court, stating,
“The statute was intended to punish organized crime, not individual conduct.”
A spokesperson for the US attorney’s office in Brooklyn declined to comment.
Kelly, 58, is serving a 30-year prison sentence after being convicted in September 2021 by a Brooklyn jury on one count of racketeering and eight counts of violating the Mann Act, which prohibits transporting individuals across state lines for prostitution.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
The post R. Kelly’s Sex Trafficking Conviction Upheld by Appeals Court appeared first on Arise News.
