<p>A jury has found R&B musician, R. Kelly guilty of being the ringleader of a nearly three-decades-long sex trafficking and racketeering enterprise, which exploited dozens of Black women and minors.</p> <p id="sign-in-gate">Kelly — full name Robert Sylvester Kelly — pleaded guilty to each charge, but was convicted over the course of a six-week trial that included searing testimony from 11 of his accusers.</p> <p>He faced charges of child pornography, obstruction of justice, and racketeering, as well as eight counts of violating the Mann Act, which prohibits transporting individuals across state lines for prosecution</p> <p>Here is a comprehensive timeline of the allegations against the disgraced 54-year-old — which date back to 1996.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263127674" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/kelly-fi-1.jpg" alt="" width="676" height="352" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Sipa US / Alamy]]</p> <h2>1992 — Kelly releases his first album</h2> <p>Kelly releases his debut album, Born into the '90s, in January of 1992, with his group Public Announcement.</p> <p>The album became an instant R&B hit, with singles including Honey Love, She's Got That Vibe, and Slow Dance (Hey Mr. DJ).</p> <p>It was only later that people called out some of the lyrics. In a damning reference to Aaliyah Haughton, he sang on She's Got That Vibe: "Little cute Aaliyah's got it."</p> <p>The late musician was just 13-years-old at the time.</p> <h2>1993 — Marriage to Aaliyah</h2> <p>In a secret ceremony, Kelly — aged 27 at the time — married 15-year-old Aaliyah.</p> <p>The marriage was annulled the following year due to her being underage.</p> <p>Almost 20 years ago, <a href="https://www.vibe.com/features/editorial/r-kellys-dec-1994-jan-1995-cover-story-superfreak-629059/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vibe Magazine</a> was the first to share what they claimed to be a copy of the pair's marriage license, which listed the singer's age as 18.</p> <p>Aside from describing their relationship as "best, best, best, best friends" in a 2016 interview with <a href="https://www.gq.com/story/r-kelly-confessions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GQ</a>, Kelly rarely spoke publically of Aaliyah. "I will never have that conversation with anyone. Out of respect for Aaliyah, and her mother and father who have asked me not to personally," he said.</p> <p>Aaliyah died in a plane crash in August of 2001, aged 22.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263127845" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/A2JJ31-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="526" height="796" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Pictorial Press Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo]]</p> <h2>1996 — Kelly sued for emotional distress</h2> <p>In December of 1996, high school student, Tiffany Hawkins, sued Kelly for "personal injuries and emotional distress."</p> <p>The aspiring singer claimed that she and Kelly had a three-year relationship, which began when she was 15 years old, and ended when she was 18.</p> <p>Kelly would have been 24-years-old.</p> <p>The case was settled out of court in 1998. According to a 2000 <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2000/12/21/18423229/r-kelly-accused-of-sex-with-teenage-girls" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chicago Sun-Times</a>, Hawkins eventually received $250,000.</p> <h2>2000 — Allegations against Kelly break in the press</h2> <p>In December of 2000, the <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/2000/12/21/18423229/r-kelly-accused-of-sex-with-teenage-girls" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chicago Sun-Times</a> started reporting on the allegations of Kelly having sex with underage girls.</p> <p>Using interviews and court records, they wrote the Ignition Remix singer "used his position of fame and influence as a pop superstar to meet girls as young as 15 and have sex with them."</p> <p>Per the article, law enforcement in Chicago had launched two investigations into claims that Kelly was having sex with an underage girl. It was dropped because the individual in question reportedly did not cooperate.</p> <p>At the time, Kelly's representative declined to issue a comment.</p> <h2>2001 — Kelly sued by intern</h2> <p>In January of 2001, a journalist at the Chicago Sun-Times anonymously received a 29-minute videotape that appeared to show Kelly having sex with a young woman. As it was suspected that the individual in question was underage, it was handed over to law enforcement.</p> <p>Then, Tracy Sampson, a former intern at Epic Records, filed a lawsuit against Kelly in August of 2001.</p> <p>Sampson, who was 17-years-old at the time of her internship, said she was "treated as his personal sex object and cast aside.</p> <p>"He often tried to control every aspect of my life including who I would see and where I would go," she continued.</p> <p>The case was settled out of court for an amount that was not made public.</p> <p><img class="wp-image-1263127844" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/C63M14-scaled-e1632912507786.jpeg" alt="" width="509" height="766" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Michael Germana / Everett Collection / Alamy]]</p> <h2>2002 — Another videotape emerges</h2> <p>A second videotape is sent anonymously to the Chicago Sun-Times.</p> <p>"The girl in the video, now 17, was identified by her aunt, who said that her niece would have been 14 at the time the tape was made, based on her appearance," the publication said. "Kelly can also be heard on the tape referring to the girl by her first name.</p> <p>Kelly denied the allegations. Speaking to WMAQ Channel 5 at the time, he said, "It's not true. All I know is this: I have a few people in the past that I've fired ... people that I've thought were my friends that's not my friends. It's crap, and that's how we're going to treat it."</p> <p>In April of 2022, Kelly was sued by Patrice Jones. She claimed that she was made pregnant by Kelly when she was 16, and that she was forced to terminate it.</p> <p>Per <a href="https://www.nme.com/news/music/r-kelly-96-1380587#uyAHXpAIKmtJkPdO.99" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NME</a>, Kelly's lawyer, Gerry Margolis, denounced the lawsuit as "a collection of half-truths, distortions and outright lies."</p> <p>The following month, in May, Kelly was also sued by Montana Woods, who claimed that the rapper filmed them having intercourse without her consent. She said that the footage was sold as a sex tape by bootleggers, and was named R.Kelly Triple-X.</p> <p>Representatives for Kelly slammed the suit as "ridiculous and nonsensical" per <a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/1454932/r-kelly-sued-by-woman-claiming-to-be-sex-tape-subject/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MTV</a>.</p> <p>Once again, he settled out of court, and each woman was paid an undisclosed amount.</p> <h2 class="zn-body__paragraph" data-paragraph-id="paragraph_5265734B-27A6-5ED7-9E93-2B50F32F9357">2002 — Kelly is indicted</h2> <p>In June of 2002, the Bump n' Grind singer was indicted on 21 counts of child abuse videos involving a number of sex acts.</p> <p>Chicago law enforcement's case revolved around him enticing a minor and then filming the acts. The charges related to just one individual, whose birthdate was in September 1984.</p> <p>Kelly denied the charges and posted a $750,000 bail.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263127847" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/G5G5XM.jpeg" alt="" width="508" height="379" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Alamy / Sipa US]]</p> <h2>2005 — Domestic incident</h2> <p>In September 2005, a domestic incident transpired between Kelly and his wife, Andrea Kelly.</p> <p>The pair married in 1996 and later divorced in 2009.</p> <p>She requested an order of protection from her then-husband, after accusing him of harming her physically after she reportedly told him she wanted a divorce.</p> <p>In a public statement, Kelly defended himself, saying: "My wife and I had a heated argument, and we are now in the process of working it out. We hope that the press and public will give us the time and privacy we need to resolve this very personal situation."</p> <p>One year later, Andrea spoke about her relationship with <a href="https://www.essence.com/celebrity/r-kellys-wife-speak-out-notes-on-a-scand/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Essence Magazine</a>: "What doesn't break you makes you stronger, and I'm living proof. I know the allegations against my husband don't reflect on me as an individual. They don't reflect on me as a mom or as a wife, and they don't reflect on me in my everyday life."</p> <h2>2008 — Kelly's child pornography trial</h2> <p>Nearly six years after he was initially indicted, the rapper's child pornography trial began.</p> <p>Kelly was ultimately acquitted on all counts. The jury deliberated for less than 24 hours, and concluded that they could not prove that the individual in the footage was actually underage.</p> <h2>2009 — Divorce finalized</h2> <p>In January of 2019, the 54-year-old finalized his divorce from Andrea.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263127849" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/KT5CT0.jpeg" alt="" width="399" height="381" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Archive PL / Alamy Stock Photo]]</p> <h2>2017 — More explosive press</h2> <p>In a comprehensive article published in July of 2017, <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/jimderogatis/parents-told-police-r-kelly-is-keeping-women-in-a-cult#.fbQx3jLqdK" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Buzzfeed</a> broke allegations that Kelly held a group of adult women, without their consent, in what was described as a "cult".</p> <p>Concerned parents of some of the women involved claimed that their daughters, who raged between the ages of 18 - 31, were manipulated by Kelly, and had cut off contact with the outside world.</p> <p>As well as taking away their phones, and prohibiting contact with family and friends, the musician reportedly controlled "what they eat, how they dress, when they bathe, when they sleep, and how they engage in sexual encounters that he records."</p> <h2>2017 — New allegations and broken NDAs</h2> <p>Jerhonda Pace broke a non-disclosure agreement in August of 2017 when he claimed she had sex with Kelly while she was underage — aged 16. Kelly denied the allegation, and she went on to testify against him in the 2021 trial.</p> <p>Next, former Dallas DJ, Kitti Jones, who was interviewed by <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/surviving-r-kelly-118608/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rolling Stone</a>, claimed that Kelly starved her, forced her into having sex with other women, and physically abused her. She was reportedly in her 30's at the time of her relationship with Kelly.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263127851" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/Screen-Shot-2021-09-29-at-11.34.07.png" alt="" width="558" height="375" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune / TNS / Alamy Live News]]</p> <h2>2018 — Faith Rodgers' lawsuit</h2> <p>In May of 2018, 20-year-old Faith Rodgers filed a lawsuit accusing Kelly of sexual battery, mental and verbal abuse, and knowingly giving her herpes.</p> <p>Kelly's representatives deny the claims.</p> <h2>2019 — Surviving R. Kelly airs</h2> <p>The six-part docuseries, Surviving R. Kelly, catapulted the case against the disgraced rapper into the mainstream.</p> <p>This caused the #MuteRKelly campaign to gather momentum, and Kelly was dropped by his record company two weeks after the documentary aired. Upcoming gigs in America and New Zealand were also canceled.</p> <h2> 2019 — A 13-count indictment</h2> <p>Lawyer Michael Avenatti claimed in February of 2019 that he had obtained a video that depicted the musician having sexual relations with a 14-year-old girl.</p> <p>Several weeks later, Kelly was charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse in Chicago. He pleaded not guilty.</p> <p>Court documents describe him having engaged in sex and oral sex with a minor "by the use of force or threat of force."</p> <p>Then, in July, the US Attorney's Office in Illinois slammed him with a 13-count indictment, which including child pornography charges.</p> <p>He was also charged with sex trafficking in New York, as prosecutors attempted to build a case that Kelly operated a criminal enterprise that forced women and underage girls to have sex with him.</p> <p>In August, he pleaded not guilty when appearing in court in New York. However, he was denied bail as it was feared that he was a flight risk.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263112075" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/06/R.Kelly_1-1.jpg" alt="" width="601" height="313" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: Sipa US / Alamy]]</p> <h2>2020 — Trial delayed</h2> <p>Kelly's Chicago trial — which was moved forward to 13 October 2020 —  was postponed after prosecutors seized over 100 electronic devices, including mobile phones.</p> <p>They also updated the charges against Kelly to "add yet another victim" — who was referred to as Minor Six, and reportedly met the R&B singer in the 90's while she was around the age of 14 or 15.</p> <p>He pleaded not guilty.</p> <h2>2020 — Witness tampering</h2> <p>Three of Kelly's entourage were charged with attempting to intimidate, harass, or bribe alleged victims in his racketeering case in August of 2020.</p> <p>Prosecutors reported that one victim was allegedly offered $500,000 for her silence. Another was threatened with revenge porn, while a third had her car set ablaze.</p> <p>Kelly's lawyer denied his involvement.</p> <p><img class=" wp-image-1263127852" src="https://img.vt.co/2021/09/2GEAXHP-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="507" height="380" />[[imagecaption|| Credit: REUTERS / Alamy Stock Photo]]</p> <h2>2021 — A guilty verdict</h2> <p>Kelly's trial began on August 18, and he was found guilty on all nine charges on September 27.</p> <p>Eleven victims — comprised of nine women and two men — took the stand to testify against the disgraced musician.</p> <p>Following two days of deliberation, the jury found him guilty of exploiting his fame to run an enterprise wherein he sexually abused women and minors for over 20 years.</p> <p>He is due to be sentenced on May 4, and could spend the rest of his life in prison.<br /> Speaking to reporters, Gloria Allred, who represented several of the victims, asserted: "I've been practicing law for 47 years. During this time, I've pursued many sexual predators who have committed crimes against women and children.</p> <p>"Of all the predators that I have pursued, Mr Kelly is the worst."</p> <h6>Feature image credit: <span id="automationThirdPartyAgencyName">Tribune Content Agency LLC</span> / Alamy Stock Photo</h6>

R. Kelly: Comprehensive timeline of allegations as singer is found guilty in sex trafficking trial

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