CHICAGO (CelebrityAccess) — Disgraced R&B singer R. Kelly’s significant legal woes were further compounded on Wednesday as he was convicted on child pornography charges in a federal courtroom in Chicago.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Kelly was found guilty on three of four counts of the federal indictment which alleged that he sexually exploited his then 14-year-old goddaughter, identified as Jane, for the purpose of making child pornography.
Those charges carry a minimum of 10 years in prison.
Kelly was acquitted of a fourth charge that alleged he videotaped himself having sexual contact with “Jane” and Lisa Van Allen, a cooperating witness for the prosecution.
Both Jane and Van Allen testified during the trial that a videotape of the encounter existed but prosecutors allege that the tape was successfully concealed by Kelly’s confederates.
Kelly was also acquitted on a fifth charge that he conspired to obstruct justice during a 2002 prosecution in Cook County. Prosecutors alleged that Kelly and several co-defendants engaged in a yearslong criminal conspiracy to prevent his victims from cooperating with law enforcement and to recover video tapes.
However, Kelly’s defense team was successfully able to raise statute-of-limitations issues around the conspiracy to obstruct charges, the Tribune reported.
Kelly’s co-defendants, Milton “June” Brown and Derrel McDavid, were acquitted on all charges that they conspired to receive child pornography and McDavid was found not guilty of conspiracy to obstruct justice as well.
Kelly was convicted on enticement counts regarding witnesses identified in court as “Jane,” “Nia” and “Pauline,” but was acquitted on enticement charges related to “Tracy” whose age at the time of the alleged offense was challenged in court. He was also acquitted of enticement charges related to an alleged victim identified as Brittney, who prosecutors said would testify during the trial but who did not appear.
Wednesday’s convictions are the latest for Kelly following his 2021 conviction in Federal court of nine charges, including racketeering predicated on criminal conduct including sexual exploitation of children, forced labor and Mann Act violations involving the coercion and transportation of women and girls in interstate commerce to engage in illegal sexual activity.
