NY.- A New York judge ordered Universal Music Group (UMG) pay 507 thousand dollars with the funds raised for the copyright of R. Kelly as compensation to the singer’s victims, according to local media.
Two years ago a jury convicted the singer of sex trafficking and extortionand the rapper was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Judge Ann Donnelly ordered UMG to pay $520,549 in royalties from the rapper to pay compensation and criminal fines.
Prosecutors had taken steps to confiscate the royaltiess from both UMG and Sony Music Entertainment, Kelly’s former label.
However, as UMG said have enough money to cover the full fine, prosecutors said yesterday they would withdraw their request to tap Sony’s account.
That doesn’t mean Sony will keep Kelly’s royalties – the label owned more than $1.5 million in Kelly’s royalties as of 2020 – as various lawsuits are pending.
On the other hand, federal prosecutors in Chicago, who won a separate conviction against Kelly for child pornography charges, they could also attempt to collect money, either from Sony or from funds remaining in the UMG account.
Kelly owes more than $42,000 in penalties and compensation in that second case.
Kelly’s lawyer Jennifer Hellowho is currently appealing his convictions, told Billboard that eventually the royalties will be returned to his client.
“ I can promise that when the Second Circuit revokes Kelly’s convictions, we will seek the return of every penny that has been unfairly taken from him,” Bonjean told the media, referring to his case in the United States Court of Appeals.
Kelly was convicted in New York in 2021 for extortion and sex trafficking and last summer he was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
In addition, in September 2022, he was found guilty in Chicago for separate charges of child pornography and sexual harassment of minors.
Kelly was sentenced to 20 years for those convictions in February, but will serve most of the time concurrently with the previous 30-year sentence. EFE
2023-08-24 20:50:53
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