Kathmandu- US singer R. Kelly has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for using his celebrity status to sexually abuse children and women.
The R&B artist, 55, was convicted last September in New York of racketeering and sex trafficking crimes. He had faced years of allegations and the judge on Wednesday said he had an “indifference to human suffering”.
Lawyers for the singer, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, say he will appeal.
Ahead of his sentencing, a handful of women
took the stand to confront Kelly.
A woman identified only as Angela called the singer a Pied Piper who “grew in wickedness” with every new victim, while others who were not named testified he had broken their spirits.
US District Judge Ann Donnelly said the celebrity had used sex as a weapon, forcing his victims to do unspeakable things and saddling some with sexually transmitted diseases.
