Disgraced R&B superstar R. Kelly's sex-trafficking trial is set to begin in Brooklyn this August, a federal judge said Thursday, after the trial was delayed four times due to the pandemic.
Kelly, real name Robert Sylvester Kelly, will face the trial for charges relating to racketeering, sexual exploitation of a child, bribery, kidnapping, forced labor and enticement.
The singer is currently locked up in a Chicago jail on a separate federal indictment that includes charges of child pornography, sexual exploitation of children and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government.
Judge Ann M. Donnelly also assured that appropriate safety measures are in place for the trial to go ahead smoothly.
"It's going to be normal as that is defined in these unusual times," she said. "It may be that communication is through headsets, but it's been working in other trials so I'm not too concerned about that."
Previously, Kelly had asked the court several times to be released, citing COVID-19 and other factors, but his requests were denied.
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