R. Kelly has filed a motion appealing his September 2021 conviction for racketeering and sex trafficking. The singer was convicted and sentenced to 30 years in prison on federal charges last year in Brooklyn.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Steve K. Francis, Acting Executive Associate Director, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), announced the sentence.
“R. Kelly used his fame, fortune and enablers to prey on the young, the vulnerable and the voiceless for his own sexual gratification, while many turned a blind eye,” stated U.S. Attorney Peace. “Through his actions, Kelly exhibited a callous disregard for the devastation his crimes had on his victims and has shown no remorse for his conduct. With today’s sentence he has finally and appropriately been held accountable for his decades of abuse, exploitation and degradation of teenagers and other vulnerable young people. We hope that today’s sentence brings some measure of comfort and closure to the victims, including those who bravely testified at trial, and serves as long-overdue recognition that their voices deserve to be heard and their lives matter.”
Kelly has always denied the allegations.
“He has contributed to society with music and his generosity, and he has people who love and support him,” defense attorney Jennifer Bonjean said in court at the time. “He maintains his innocence, and he is not calculating and cunning. Mob justice is in vogue, but this court must distinguish between boorish behavior and criminal.”
