R. Kelly pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to a federal indictment out of the Eastern District of New York, according to the Associated Press and other outlets that covered the arraignment.
Prosecutors have added a bribery allegation to the racketeering case against him. They allege Kelly bribed a government employee in 1994 to obtain a falsified ID for Aaliyah that listed her age as 18. Aaliyah was 15 at the time, and prosecutors say the document made it possible for the two to marry on August 31, 1994. Kelly has denied wrongdoing and entered a not guilty plea.
Kelly appeared at the hearing by video from a Chicago jail, where he has been held while awaiting trial. He also faces separate cases in Illinois and Minnesota, and he has pleaded not guilty in those as well. All of the charges are allegations that have not been proven in court.
Demetrius Smith, Kelly’s former tour manager, has said publicly on several occasions that he helped obtain the ID and was present for the wedding. Those are his claims, and they have not been tested at trial.
The federal case is set to go to trial in April 2020.
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