R Kelly Gets 30 Years In NY Court For Sex Trafficking Children: Report

NEW YORK CITY — R. Kelly will serve 30 years in prison after his conviction in a high-profile sex trafficking case, a Brooklyn federal court judge said Wednesday, according to the New York Times.

The sentence is a long-awaited reckoning for Kelly, 55, an R&B legend who has faced accusations for decades that he's a sexual predator of young women and girls, court records show.

Prosecutors argued before Kelly's sentencing hearing in Brooklyn federal court that he should stay behind bars until "he reaches his 70s."

"He continued his crimes and avoided punishment for them for almost 30 years and must now be held to account," U.S. District Attorney Breon Peace wrote in a sentencing memo.

Peace is expected to make a statement after Kelly's sentencing that can be livestreamed here.

In the end, U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly agreed with prosecutors, the Times reports. She was set to hear from victims during the sentencing hearing and perhaps even Kelly — whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly — himself.

Kelly stood atop popular culture as the singer of hits such as "I Believe I Can Fly," even as disturbing sexual abuse accusations trailed him from his hometown of Chicago.

The accusations simmered for decades and cast an ever-growing shadow over the singer's reputation. Numerous exposés, court battles and a documentary series — "Surviving R. Kelly" — detailed stories from women who said Kelly preyed upon and subjected them to perverse and sadistic whims when they were underage.

But Kelly stayed out of prison until federal prosecutors in New York City mounted a sprawling racketeering case against him in which jurors found him guilty on nine counts.

As Kelly sentencing neared, prosecutors argued he posed a "serious danger" to the public. They wrote in court documents that Kelly's crimes fell in four categories: enticement of children, sexual exploitation of children through the production of child pornography, forced labor and exposing others to his genital herpes without informing sexual partners.

Kelly used his fame, money and popularity to carry out his crimes, as well as a but also a cadre of business managers, security guards, lawyers and more to execute and conceal his predatory behaviors, prosecutors argued.

"His actions were brazen, manipulative, controlling and coercive," they wrote. "He has shown no remorse or respect for the law."

Kelly's sentence came one day after another New York City federal judge sentenced Ghislaine Maxwell to 20 years in prison for helping billionaire Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse young girls and women.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.