R. Kelly ordered to pay $300,000 in damages to victims
The R&B singer is currently serving a 30-year sentence in Chicago
R. Kelly has been ordered to pay more than $300,000 in damages to his victims following a court order in New York.
The singer, who is currently serving a 30-year prison sentence at MCC Chicago, Illinois, was ordered to pay $309,068.18 in restitution to victims of his sex trafficking, according to Courthouse News reporter Nina Pullano.
“R. Kelly to pay at least $309K in restitution to victims. The jury’s guilty verdict in his Brooklyn sex trafficking came in one year ago yesterday,” Pullano tweeted on Wednesday, September 28.
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According to Pullano, $300,668.18 of that sum will go toward Jane, one of Kelly’s victims, while a further $8,400 will go toward second victim Stephanie. “The government will recalculate its estimate for additional restitution,” she added.
The money will be used toward therapy and herpes treatment for both women, according to Reuters, and could be recalculated by prosecutors to match costs of medical treatment for Stephanie.
The artist has already been ordered to pay $140,000 in fines and assessments, according to Pullano.
Kelly is currently imprisoned for federal sex crimes including racketeering and trafficking spanning some 25 years. The 55-year-old was described as “having a dark side” in the opening speech of his second trial in Chicago.
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“He made videotapes of himself having sex with children. And these two co-defendants, Derrel McDavid and Milton Brown, knew about it,” Assistant United States Attorney Jason Julien told the court.
“And he kept those videos close, because if the world found out that he was having sex with children, he’d be in a lot of trouble, and it would ruin his career.”
He was also accused of obstructing justice, obtaining and creating child pornography, as well as encouraging minors into sexual conduct - totalling 13 offences. Kelly currently awaits sentences for the Illinois trial.
Gemma Ross is Mixmag's Editorial Assistant, follow her on Twitter