R. Kelly accuser tells court she contracted herpes from the star following a fling and reached a secret $200,000 settlement with him
- R. Kelly is currently on trial in Brooklyn facing charges of racketeering and sex trafficking
- Woman identified as ‘Kate’ told court Friday she contracted herpes from Kelly in 2001
- She says she eventually reached a $200,000 settlement with the star three years later
- Kelly’s doctor has previously testified that he treated the singer for the sexually transmitted infection
R. Kelly reached a $200,000 settlement with a woman after she allegedly contracted herpes from him in 2001, a New York Court has heard.
The woman, who identified herself as Kate, took to the stand to testify against the world-famous R&B singer at his sex abuse trial in Brooklyn on Friday.
Kelly, 54, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, has been on trial since Aug. 18 for running an alleged decade-long racketeering scheme targeting women and girls for sex, with help from employees and assistants. He has pleaded not guilty.
Kate claimed she was 27 when she met Kelly in 2001, and contracted herpes from him after they slept together. She told the court Kelly was tight-lipped when she later accused him of giving her the sexually transmitted disease.
Kate said she settled with the singer in 2004, and that the herpes diagnosis ‘greatly affected’ her ability to enter future relationships.
Kelly´s personal physician has also testified, saying he treated the star for herpes for several years.
R. Kelly reached a $200,000 settlement with a woman after she allegedly contracted herpes from him in 2001, a New York Court has heard. He is pictured alongside his lawyer Nicole Blank Becker in a court sketch crafted on Friday
Kelly’s lawyer Deveraux Cannick used his cross-examination to undercut earlier testimony that Kelly demanded that his girlfriends follow strict rules.
These rules have included needing Kelly’s permission to go to the bathroom, looking away from other men, and not talking about Kelly in his absence, several witnesses have testified.
Kate told Cannick that Kelly behaved differently around her, letting her go to the bathroom when she wanted and not making her wait around for him for long periods. She also said she helped him write down song lyrics.
Kelly was charged in a nine-count indictment describing his alleged mistreatment of six women and girls, including the late singer Aaliyah.
Kate is not one of those women and girls, but is among other Kelly accusers testifying for prosecutors.
Prosecutors allege that Kelly trafficked women and girls across state lines. He is facing a maximum of life behind bars. He is pictured in 2019
Kelly has repeatedly denied accusations that he preyed on victims during a 30-year career. His lawyers have portrayed his accusers as groupies who are lying about their relationships with him.
The trial has so far featured a steady stream of accusers claiming Kelly began sexually degrading them when they were still in their teens. They said he used his stardom to lure them into an insular world where he watched their every move and doled out perverse punishments, spanking them and isolating them in hotel rooms if they broke a vow to never speak about him to anyone else.
Kelly´s personal physician has also testified, saying he treated him for herpes for several years.
Many of the sex-related misconduct allegations were discussed in the 2019 Lifetime documentary ‘Surviving R. Kelly.’
On Monday, Kelly’s first male accuser testified that he offered him help with his music career in exchange for sexual favors.
The man, testifying under the pseudonym Louis, said he was 17 when Kelly first started making sexual advances at him.
Kelly faces between 10 years and life in prison if convicted on all counts.
Kelly faces between 10 years and life in prison if convicted on all counts. He is pictured in court in 2019
THE CHARGES R. KELLY IS ON TRIAL FOR IN NEW YORK:
R. Kelly is standing trial in Brooklyn federal court accused of being the ringleader of a sex ring involving women and underage girls and boys.
The charges were first brought in a five-count superseding indictment in Brooklyn federal court in July 2019.
In March 2020, he was slapped with additional charges upgrading the case to a nine-count indictment.
The charges relate to allegations involving six alleged victims – five women named as Jane Does in the indictment and the singer Aaliyah. These charges are:
ONE COUNT OF RACKETEERING
The racketeering charge includes 14 underlying acts including: one act of bribery, three acts of sexual exploitation of a child, one act of kidnapping, three acts of forced labor and six acts of violating the Mann Act.
Racketeering charges are used where there is an ‘enterprise’, mob or mafia running organized crime operations.
In this case, Kelly is accused of running a racketeering ‘enterprise’ for two decades made up of his ‘inner circle’ of managers, bodyguards and other employees who would help him recruit women, girls and boys for him to sexually exploit and traffic them around the US.
To convict Kelly on the racketeering charge, he must be found guilty of at least two of the 14 acts.
EIGHT COUNTS OF VIOLATING THE MANN ACT
The Mann Act is a federal law that makes it illegal to traffic people across state lines for prostitution or illegal sexual activity.
Four of these charges relate to an incident involving Jane Doe #5 in 2015 while the other four involve Jane Doe #6 in separate incidents in May 2017 and February 2018.
Three of these charges involve Kelly allegedly exposing the two women to herpes without informing them.
Source: Read Full Article
