Chicago — Famed R&B singer R. Kelly has been convicted Monday on all counts of racketeering and sex trafficking in federal court in New York.
On the second day of deliberations, Robert Sylvester Kelly was found guilty of enticing girls for his sexual gratification and keeping them loyal and quiet with the help of some of his managers and aides as detailed in the trial that started Aug. 18.
In addition to the racketeering, the 54-year-old Chicago born entertainer was convicted on all eight counts of violating the Mann Act, which forbids travel over state lines for illegal sex.
Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn Kasulis said “justice was finally served.”
“Today's verdict forever brands R. Kelly as a predator who used his fame and fortune to prey on the young, the vulnerable and the voiceless for his own sexual gratification,” she said. “A predator who used his inner circle to ensnare underage girls and men and women for decades in a sordid web of sex abuse, degradation and humiliation.”
He has been the subject of several documentaries detailing his predatory past over the last three decades, including Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly” and CBS News’ “The Gayle King Interview with R. Kelly.”
Kelly, who is scheduled for sentencing May 4, faces up to 20 years in prison.
While he was convicted in a New York court Monday, his legal troubles are not over. He awaits trial on several cases in Chicago’s Cook County, including an indictment in a federal case. He also faces a solicitation case in Minnesota.