Oloruntobi Alabi
A Chicago federal court has turned down R&B star R. Kelly’s plea for an urgent transfer from prison to home confinement.
His defense team insisted his safety was at severe risk behind bars, citing alleged threats targeting the embattled singer.
Kelly’s attorneys claimed officials at Chicago’s Metropolitan Correctional Center worked with an ex-cellmate to tamper with his legal correspondence, leaking sensitive documents ahead of his trial.
Furthermore, they alleged that staff at FCI Butner in North Carolina—where Kelly is currently imprisoned—attempted to orchestrate his murder by recruiting a member of the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang.
Shockingly, they also accused prison authorities of intentionally overdosing Kelly and forcibly discharging him from medical care against physicians’ orders.
In desperation, his lawyers filed an emergency petition and publicly appealed to then-President Donald Trump for intervention.
U.S. District Judge Martha Pacold swiftly dismissed the motion Thursday, citing jurisdictional issues.
“Kelly is detained at FCI Butner, which falls outside this court’s district,” she ruled. “No legal grounds justify our authority here. His emergency request is denied.”
Prosecutors slammed the allegations as outrageous, countering, “Kelly avoids accountability for his crimes—exploiting children for years—while frivolously manipulating the legal system for attention.”
The 58-year-old disgraced artist is serving a 30-year sentence after his 2021 New York conviction for racketeering and sex trafficking.
A separate 2022 Chicago trial found him guilty of child pornography, with sentences mostly running concurrently. His projected release date remains December 2045.
In related entertainment news, SaharaReporters noted R&B star Chris Brown’s recent not-guilty plea in a UK assault case.
Brown appeared in London’s Southwark Crown Court Friday, sharply dressed, denying charges of attempted grievous bodily harm tied to a 2023 nightclub altercation.
“Not guilty, ma’am,” he stated firmly when arraigned.
The singer, released earlier on £5 million ($6.7M) bail after a Manchester arrest, faces allegations of bottle attacks, kicks, and punches during the alleged incident.
John Okoro
