R&B singer, R. Kelly was yesterday sentenced to 30 years in prison according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
This followed his conviction last year on federal racketeering and sex trafficking charges stemming from his efforts over years to use his fame to ensnare victims he sexually abused.
According to CNN, prosecutors had asked the judge to sentence Kelly, 55, to more than 25 years behind bars, while his defense attorneys asked for 10 or fewer, saying prosecutors’ request was, “tantamount to a life sentence.”
Survivors of Kelly’s abuse held hands and prayed as US District Court Judge Ann Donnelly began reading his sentence.
Kelly who wore a tan prison uniform, dark-rimmed glasses and a black mask at the hearing in federal court in Brooklyn showed no emotion.
“You left in your wake a trail of broken lives,” Donnelly told Kelly, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly.
