Disgraced r 'n' b singer R. Kelly has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for sexually abusing women, girls and boys.
Kelly, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, was found guilty last September of racketeering and sex trafficking crimes.
Several of the 55-year-old's victims addressed the court ahead of his sentencing yesterday, accusing him of being a 'Pied Piper' who 'grew in wickedness' with every new victim that he abused.
One of them addressed him, saying: "You made me do things that broke my spirit. I literally wished I would die because of how low you made me feel. Do you remember that?"
Judge Ann Donnelly, who imposed a 30-year sentence on Kelly, said that he had used sex as a weapon, had transmitted STDs to his victims and had forced them to 'unspeakable things', adding "You taught them that love is enslavement and violence."
During his trial in New York last September, the court heard how Kelly had trafficked women between states in the US, with the help of members of his entourage, management and security guards. It also heard that his victims were subjected to his sadistic whims, including needing his permission to eat and go to the toilet.
Kelly - who also obtained illegal paperwork in order to marry the singer Aaliyah when she was 15 and he was 27 - has been in prison since charges were first brought against him in 2019.
Prosecutors had sought a 25-year sentence, but his lawyers had argued for a 10-year one, citing his "traumatic childhood involving severe, prolonged childhood sexual abuse, poverty, and violence” as a mitigating factor.
He is due to go on trial again in August in Chicago, where he faces charges relating to enticement of a minor, possession of child abuse images and obstruction of justice, while further charges of sex abuse in Illinois and Minnesota also await him.
If you have been affected by any of the topics raised above, help is available at Women's Aid, Men's Aid and Childline.
