– He was everything to me. For a long time I didn’t even want to believe it happened, says Joann Kelly (26), who goes by the name Buku Abi. She is the daughter of the convicted R&B artist R. Kelly (57), who is serving a long prison sentence for assault, human trafficking and organized crime. Abi was not named as one of the victims in the trial against Kelly in 2021. However, in a new documentary on TVEI, she makes new accusations against her own father. According to the daughter, the abuse happened when she was eight or nine years old. – I was too scared to tell anyone. I was too scared to tell my mother. Reported in 2009 In the documentary, Abi says that she finally told about the abuse when she was ten years old, and that the case was reported in 2009. – They couldn’t charge him because I waited too long. At that point in my life, I felt like I had said it for nothing. In a statement to People, his lawyer Jennifer Bonjean says that the artist strongly denies the allegations. – His ex-wife made the same claim many years ago. It was investigated by DCFS and found to be unfounded. Abi says that she has struggled with a life in the shadow of her father. – No one wants to be the child of someone who harms women and children. Decades of accusations R. Kelly is considered one of the greatest R&B artists of the 90s, and among other things won three Grammys for the super hit “I Believe I Can Fly”. However, the accusations against him have rained down for decades, the BBC writes: Previous accusations against R. Kelly In 1994, he married the 15-year-old singer Aaliyah. It was later discovered that she had lied about her age to the authorities, and the marriage was annulled the following year. In 1996, he was sued for psychological distress by his ex-girlfriend Tiffany Hawkins, who says she was a minor when they began a relationship. In 2001, Kelly was also sued by an employee who accused him of tricking her into a sexual act when she was 17 years old, according to the New York Post. The following year, the artist was sued again by two women. One of them claimed he got her pregnant when she was a minor. In 2002, he was also indicted on 21 counts of child pornography, after a video was sent to the Chicago Sun Times newspaper. He was acquitted in court in 2008, when there was no evidence that the girl in the video was a minor. Later, Kelly was indicted on 12 new counts of child pornography. The case was dismissed. In 2017, Buzzfeed wrote a case where Kelly was accused of forcing six women into a “sex cult”. According to Buzzfeed, Kelly allegedly seduced the women and took control of their lives. The article led to new accusations, where several women came forward and accused him of various abuses. It was only after the documentary series “Surviving R. Kelly” was released in 2019 that the ball really started to roll. Kelly was prosecuted in several criminal cases, and the prosecution believed that since the 90s the artist had used his position and network to recruit and sexually exploit young people. The artist, who has said that he himself was abused as a child, has denied guilt throughout. R. Kelly won a Grammy in 1998 for the song I Believe I Can Fly. Photo: AFP His daughter stated in 2019 on social media that she did not want to comment on the matter for her own mental health. – I am fully aware of who and what he is. I grew up in that house. My choice not to talk about him is for my own peace of mind, she wrote. Imprisoned until 2045 While he was sentenced in 2022 for abuse and human trafficking, the fallen artist was also convicted the following year for, among other things, possessing child abuse material. Kelly is now serving a minimum term of 19 years, and will not be eligible for parole until 2045. The 57-year-old has been behind bars since he was arrested in 2019, and has repeatedly asked to be released without success. In 2020, he was attacked in his cell by another inmate, and his lawyer argued that he was not safe behind bars. Kelly also appealed the 2023 conviction, arguing that the charges were time-barred. However, on Monday this week, the United States Supreme Court declined to hear the case again. Published 13.10.2024, at 12.56 p.m
ttn-69
R. Kelly’s daughter accuses him of abuse – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
