A lawyer for R. Kelly appeared to admit in Brooklyn Federal Court on Tuesday that the R&B singer had 'sexual contact' with Aaliyah when she was just 15 years old.
The 54-year-old singer, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, appeared in court with his attorney Thomas Farinella for a pre-trial hearing in a racketeering case that slated to start next Monday.
Among other allegations, the 'I Believe I Can Fly' singer has been accused of bribing an official in Illinois in 1994 to issue an illegal wedding certificate to Aaliyah that said she was 18 years old when she was just 15 years old.
Farinella appeared to make the shocking admission while being questioned by Judge Ann Donnelly - who asked if he was going to deny there was sexual contact between Jane Doe 1, the alias used for Aaliyah in the case, the New York Daily News reported.
'Are you going to deny that there was sexual contact with Jane Doe 1? They were married,' Donnelly said.
'No,' Farinella responded after a 'deep sigh', according to the outlet.
Musical artist R. Kelly, right, appears alongside lawyer Thomas Farinella, center, during a hearing on sex trafficking allegations
Farinella appeared to admit in Brooklyn Federal Court on Tuesday that R&B singer R. Kelly, left, had 'sexual contact' with Aaliyah, right, when she was just 15 years old
Prosecutors allege that Kelly trafficked women and girls across state lines, making child pornography featuring numerous minors
But Farinella then appeared to walk back the admission after federal prosecutor Elizabeth Geddes reminded him that Aaliyah, born Aaliyah Dana Haughton, was underage at the time.
Geddes asked: 'Are they not going to dispute that at the time Jane Doe 1 was 13 to 15 years old?'
'We do dispute. We're not prepared to concede that right now,' Farinella said.
The Daily News noted that it was not clear to the outlet if Farinella was referring to Aaliyah’s age or if the
