In the second installment of Lifetime’s hit docuseries, “Surviving R. Kelly,” one of the singer’s accusers said she was instructed to kill herself if he went to jail or was harmed.
According to The Los Angeles Times, Jerhonda Pace was 15 when she met Kelly and lived with him until 2010. In “Surviving R. Kelly Part II,” which is scheduled to air three consecutive nights starting on January 2, Pace tearfully reveals that Kelly “forced” her into a suicide pact with him.
“If anything was to happen to him, like if he was to go to jail [or] if someone was to harm him, I was supposed to kill myself,” she recalled.
Kelly, now 52, has been in federal custody in Illinois since July for 13 criminal counts, including child pornography and obstruction of justice. He was also charged with five federal counts in New York for racketeering and sex trafficking.
Kelly is also facing a total of 21 sex-related criminal charges in Cook County, Illinois — 11 which were filed in May and 10 in February. Those state charges reportedly stem from incidents dating as far back as 1998 and involve at least three underage girls.
In August, authorities in Minnesota charged Kelly with two counts of prostitution with a person under 18 in connection with an alleged 2001 incident.
Kelly’s federal trial in Illinois is scheduled to begin in April. His federal trial in New York is slated to start the following month. The singer has categorically denied all allegations of sexual misconduct.
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[Featured image: Jerhonda Pace/YouTube video screengrab]