According to reports, R&B singer R. Kelly was rushed to hospital after reportedly receiving a near-fatal dose of anxiety medication while serving a prison sentence in the United States. His legal team now claims the incident was part of a wider conspiracy to kill him while in custody.
According to court documents and media reports, the 57-year-old, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, collapsed on 13 June at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Butner in North Carolina. He was subsequently airlifted to Duke University Hospital, where doctors discovered life-threatening blood clots in his lungs and legs.
His attorney, Beau Brindley, stated that the singer had been administered double doses of anxiety medication by prison staff, despite warnings from previous doctors regarding potential adverse reactions. “Mr Kelly was taken from the hospital prematurely and returned to prison against medical advice,” Brindley alleged.
In an emergency filing submitted on 10 June to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Kelly’s legal team claimed that the overdose was not accidental. They argue that it was part of a coordinated plot involving prison officials and white supremacist inmates.
<
“This is not a conspiracy theory. This is a conspiracy,” Brindley wrote in the motion. He further alleged that prison officials had approached another inmate, Mikeal Glenn Stine, with offers of a transfer to a lower-security facility and other incentives in exchange for assassinating Kelly.
Also Read: Speed Darlington Under Investigation by NAPTIP Following Viral Confession Video
Stine has since submitted a sworn declaration, stating: “I was solicited by a group of people including prison officials and white supremacist inmates to harm Mr Kelly.”
Following the alleged overdose, Kelly’s lawyers claim he was denied adequate follow-up care. “He was refused blood thinners and not allowed to recover in a proper medical setting,” Brindley said. “The actions of prison officials amount to deliberate indifference, which constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.”
Despite the severity of the claims, federal prosecutors are reportedly expected to contest the jurisdiction of the court in the upcoming hearing. They have described the allegations as “fanciful” and “deeply unserious”.
A hearing on the matter is scheduled to take place on 20 June before Judge Martha Pacold. Kelly’s legal team is seeking either a transfer to home confinement or a temporary medical furlough, citing urgent health concerns and ongoing threats to his safety.
Kelly is currently serving a 30-year sentence for sex trafficking and racketeering, with a separate 20-year sentence for child pornography charges to be served concurrently.
