R. Kelly‘s defense team dropped a bombshell on Tuesday, making an urgent plea to President Trump for the singer’s release from federal custody. In a shocking twist, they alleged that prison authorities are involved in a sinister plot to tamper with his mail and orchestrated a plan involving a white supremacist to end his life behind bars.
The singer’s legal representatives filed an emergency motion in Chicago’s federal court, highlighting the grave danger to Kelly’s life as he serves his 30-year sentence for sex-related crimes. They made a direct appeal to President Trump, urging immediate intervention for Kelly’s release.
“R. Kelly’s life is now threatened, because of his willingness to fight and to expose the very kind of corruption that President Trump has been fighting and standing up to since the day he took that office,” Kelly’s attorney, Beau Brindley, said at a press conference Tuesday afternoon. “We will ask President Trump to help us.”
The timing is notable, as Trump recently commuted notorious Gangster Disciples co-founder Larry Hoover‘s sentence and has hinted at potentially pardoning Sean “Diddy” Combs, who faces sex trafficking and racketeering charges. Earlier this year, Trump also pardoned former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, following up on his previous commutation of Blagojevich’s corruption sentence five years ago.
Brindley emphasized their intention to bypass standard clemency procedures, citing the urgency of Kelly’s situation. “We are seeking a conversation with the president, because R. Kelly does not have the time, with his life in danger, to go through the normal channels,” Brindley said. “We are seeking talks with the White House. We are seeking talks with everybody who is willing to help us.”
The motion alleges a disturbing conspiracy involving Kelly’s former cellmate at the Chicago federal facility. According to the filing, this cellmate collaborated with prison officials to intercept Kelly’s legal correspondence and provide it to prosecutors before his child pornography trial, aiming to turn Kelly’s ex-girlfriend against him.
The legal team further claims that a Bureau of Prisons official recently warned Kelly about potential food poisoning, advising him to “avoid the mess hall.” The situation allegedly escalated when an Aryan Brotherhood member at Kelly’s North Carolina prison facility revealed that officials had orchestrated his transfer specifically to target Kelly.
According to the motion, prison authorities allegedly promised this inmate assistance in escaping prosecution for Kelly’s murder by facilitating a prison break, similar to one he had previously executed. The defense team states that while this inmate initially agreed to the alleged plot, he instead chose to warn Kelly about the threat to his life.
The legal drama took another twist when it was revealed that the inmate who exposed these alleged plots has an extensive track record of filing lawsuits against federal authorities and prison officials.
After Kelly’s legal team accidentally disclosed a victim’s identity in their motion, federal prosecutors quickly moved to have the filing sealed.
When reached for comment about the explosive allegations in Kelly’s legal team’s filing, representatives from Chicago’s U.S. Attorney’s office remained silent.
The 58-year-old R&B star was found guilty in 2022 on multiple child pornography charges in Chicago, including making explicit videos with three underage girls, one being his 14-year-old goddaughter.
In a split verdict, the jury cleared Kelly of seven other charges, including allegations that he and two associates had tampered with his 2008 Cook County child pornography trial.
Brindley, who previously defended Kelly’s former manager McDavid in that trial, now represents Kelly himself.
In a separate case, a New York federal jury convicted Kelly in 2021 of running a criminal enterprise aimed at exploiting young women and children sexually.
Both convictions have been upheld by federal appeals courts.
Kelly received a 30-year sentence in the New York case, with his 20-year Chicago sentence running mostly concurrently. He’s currently housed at North Carolina’s Butner medium-security federal facility, with a projected release date of December 21, 2045, when he’ll be approaching 79 years old.
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