CLIPPED WINGS: Jurors find R Kelly guilty of sex racketeering

R KELLY

Do you still remember him? R Kelly was once the prince of Pop music. His 1996 hit song, I believe I can fly, continues to register on the minds and souls of lovers of music.

But R. Kelly, who is has been on trial for sex trafficking trial in New York, has been found guilty by jurors of sex racketeering, involving a scheme to recruit and sexually abuse women, girls and boys.

He was convicted on all nine counts including violations of the Mann Act, which prohibits the transport of “any woman or girl” across state lines for any “immoral purpose.”

He faces life in prison.

The jury of seven men and five women deliberated for about nine hours across two days before reaching their unanimous verdict, New York Post reported.

Prosecutors had painted Kelly, 54, as a “predator” who used his fame and a cadre of employees to prey on young victims.

“This case is not about a celebrity who likes to party a lot,” Assistant US Attorney Maria Cruz Melendez said in her opening statement last month.

“This case is about a predator,” she said.

According to reports, the jurors began Monday by sending the judge a note asking for transcripts of testimony by two former Kelly employees and for a legal clarification.

Deliberations first began on Friday, before the panel of seven men and five women took the weekend off.

The 54-year-old Kelly had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Kelly is best known for the 1996 hit “I Believe I Can Fly”.
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