Singer R Kelly sentenced to 30 years in prison for sexual abuse charges and racketeering

R&B singer R Kelly has been sentenced to 30 years in jail for sexually abusing children and women by using his celebrity status. He was convicted of racketeering and sex trafficking crimes in New York in September last year. The US District Judge Ann Donnelly handed down the sentence after several victims presented their accounts and addressed Kelly at the hearing.

According to NBC News, while delivering the sentence, the judge told the singer, that he 'took advantage' of the victims' hopes and dreams and 'forced them to do unspeakable things.'

'You took advantage of their hopes and dreams, holding teenagers in your house trapped. You were at the top of your organization, and you raped and beat them, separated them from their families, and forced them to do unspeakable things,' NBC News quoted the judge as saying.

As per NBC News, the prosecutors at the trial said that Kelly was a serial sexual predator for over two decades. They also alleged that he led a criminal enterprise that recruited and groomed victims for sex. The singer has also been accused of confining victims in hotel rooms or his recording studio.

Kelly, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges, did not take the stand in his own defence.

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