Federal prosecutors have denied R. Kelly’s request to be released from prison, dismissing his claim that officials conspired to have him killed behind bars.
Kelly, who is serving a 30-year sentence for racketeering and sex crimes, along with a separate 20-year sentence for child pornography convictions in Chicago, has alleged that prison staff tried to have him assassinated. According to a report by Variety, his attorneys stated that they have clear evidence that officials at a federal penitentiary in North Carolina hired an inmate to kill him in an effort to cover up misconduct by the government.
Prosecutors pushed back strongly, calling the accusation “deeply unserious” and “repugnant.” They also argued that the judge overseeing the case has no authority to grant his release, as cited by abc7chichago report.
“We are engaged in conversations with multiple persons close to the White House and to President Trump,” Kelly’s legal team said in a statement. “My client does not have the luxury to wait for vindication from the Courts that will follow the exposure of the corruption at the heart of his prosecutions.”
{{/usCountry}}“We are engaged in conversations with multiple persons close to the White House and to President Trump,” Kelly’s legal team said in a statement. “My client does not have the luxury to wait for vindication from the Courts that will follow the exposure of the corruption at the heart of his prosecutions.”
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Counts against Robert Sylvester Kelly
Kelly, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, is currently being held at a federal facility in North Carolina. He was convicted in September 2021 on nine counts including racketeering and violations of the Mann Act, involving the sexual exploitation of minors. The following June, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison. In February 2023, he was sentenced again—this time to 20 years—for child sex crimes. All but one year of that sentence is being served concurrently with his earlier sentence.
In February of this year, a federal appeals court upheld Kelly’s convictions and his 30-year sentence, rejecting arguments that the evidence was insufficient and that the trial judge made critical errors.