R Kelly’s ex-wife of 13 years says her heart breaks for her kids and victims

R Kelly’s ex-wife has spoken of her heartbreak for her children after the disgraced singer was convicted of multiple s*x trafficking charges on Monday.

The R&B star, whose legal name is Robert Kelly, was found guilty of all nine counts in a Brooklyn federal court, including racketeering based on s*xual exploitation of children, kidnapping, forced labor, and other charges.

‘I feel that my heart is in two places,’ Drea Kelly told UK-based ITV’s Good Morning Britain on Tuesday following the verdict last night.

‘My heart definitely goes out to the survivors and the courage that it takes to come forward and tell the story, but my heart breaks as a mother because this is now the legacy that my children will have to deal with and their children’s children.

‘At the end of the day, you cannot walk away from your blood line,’ she explained. ‘I have the ability to separate and distance myself from it, but his blood runs through my children’s veins and it’s part of their DNA and they couldn’t escape it even if they wanted to. So it’s very difficult for me to sit in that position.’

The 54-year-old Kelly faces up to 100 years in prison – 20 years for racketeering, 10 for each of the s*x trafficking convictions.

Sentencing is expected to take place on May 4, 2022, until which Kelly will remain in custody.