Opening Statements Are Slated For Wednesday In R. Kelly Federal Trial

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Singer R. Kelly appears in a Chicago courtroom in March 2019.

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Arts & Life
R. Kelly Is Going To Trial For Alleged Sex Crimes. Here’s What To Know

The federal prosecutors in New York are structuring their case similar to that of an organized crime case. The charges include racketeering — that is, that Kelly allegedly ran a criminal enterprise whose explicit purpose was «to prey upon young women and teenagers,» and that he was allegedly aided by managers, gofers, and others in his entourage — as well as sexually trafficking the girls and women across state lines.

The New York charges include six alleged victims — including the singer Aaliyah, Kelly’s former protégée, whom he married in 1994, when she was 15 and he was 27. The government is also hoping to have the jurors hear and see what they say is evidence of other, uncharged criminal offenses committed by Kelly between 1991 and 2018. Those other allegations include 20 Jane Does and one teenaged John Doe.

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The Allegations Against R. Kelly: An Abridged History

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