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R. Kelly trial: First male accuser testifies to sexual abuse

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R. Kelly’s sex trafficking trial entered its eighth day on Monday, with a male accuser testifying that the star promised him fame in exchange for sex.

The man, who testified under the pseudonym Louis, said he was a 17-year-old when Mr Kelly asked him what he “was willing to do for music”.

He then described how the singer crawled towards him and performed a sex act, even though “I wasn’t into it”.

Mr Kelly, 54, denies all the charges against him.

These include a single count of racketeering – which paints him as the kingpin of a criminal enterprise whose explicit purpose was “to prey upon young women and teenagers” for sexual purposes – and eight counts of violating an interstate anti-sex trafficking law known as the Mann Act.

The singer, whose full name is Robert Kelly, is not charged with rape or assault, but prosecutors are allowed to present evidence of any potential crimes related to the racketeering charge, regardless of when they occurred.

Male accuser’s testimony

On Monday, the jury heard from two accusers, both of whom said they were underage when they met Mr Kelly.

Louis said he first encountered Mr Kelly in 2006, when he was a 17-year-old working the night shift at a McDonald’s in Chicago.

He told the court that Mr Kelly slipped him his phone number, and invited him to his house, saying he could perform in his recording studio and receive some tips on the music business.

One on such occasion, the star asked Louis if he had ever “had any fantasies” involving men, then allegedly “crawled down on his knees and proceeded to give me oral sex”.

Afterwards, “he told me to keep between him and me”, adding, “we family now, we brothers”, Louis alleged.

He said Mr Kelly asked him to call him “daddy” – echoing the testimony of several female accusers – and would routinely film their sexual encounters.

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