One of R. Kelly’s sex abuse accusers has come forward to detail the R&B star’s alleged misconduct.
Lanita Carter chose to speak about her experiences with the singer after watching him attempt to defend himself in an explosive U.S. TV news interview with Gayle King earlier this month (Mar19).
Speaking publicly for the first time, the alleged victim told CBS News, “I’m not ashamed of my past anymore. I’m not ashamed of what naysayers say.”
Carter, who served as Kelly’s hairdresser, claims the R&B star tried to force her into oral sex in 2003 and when she resisted, he allegedly masturbated and spat in her face.
Kelly has maintained his innocence against a barrage of sexual abuse allegations against him in recent months.
Carter revealed she felt compelled to speak out and tell her story after watching Kelly’s interview with King, during which he broke down and suggested his accusers were “trying to kill” him.
During the fiery 80-minute sit down, he raged, “I have been assassinated. I have been buried alive. But I’m alive.
“I’m trying to have a relationship with my kids! And I can’t do it! Y’all just don’t want to believe the truth! You don’t want to believe it!”
“I felt like it should be a crime…,” Carter stated during her CBS News appearance. “That he be able to get on television and lie. It’s actually the reason I’m here.”
She also tearfully told correspondent Jericka Duncan she previously defended Kelly’s behaviour, revealing, “I would tell people, ‘Pray for him. He is nothing like they say’,” before adding, “I’ve been carrying this since 2003. I have had to sit on a public bus and watch public conversation: ‘Did you hear about what they did with R. Kelly? They need to leave that man alone’. And I can’t stand up for myself.”
Carter signed a $650,000 (£497,000) settlement with Kelly, in which the star denied any wrongdoing. He signed another confidential settlement six years later over the lyrics to his song Hair Braider, in which he described having sex with a hairdresser.
Carter accepts she has breached both settlements by speaking out.
Responding to Carter’s interview, Kelly’s lawyer says, “These allegations were fully investigated by the police and prosecutors and a decision was made after evaluating all of the evidence not to bring any charges.”
Kelly has been charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
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