Nicki Minaj's Brother Sentenced to 25 Years to Life for Child Rape
Nicki Minaj’s brother will serve 25 years to life in prison for child rape.
A judge sentenced Jelani Maraj in a Long Island courtroom on Monday, several months after a bid to set aside a verdict due to jury misconduct.
The sentence comes over two years after a jury found Maraj guilty of predatory sexual assault against a child and endangering the welfare of a child. He was accused of raping his then-11-year-old stepdaughter while he was married to her mother. During the trial, which lasted less than three weeks, the defense claimed the allegations were fabricated to extort $25 million from Maraj’s famous sister.
In 2015, Nicki paid for her brother’s $100,000 bond. She visited him while he was locked up in 2017, but she reportedly only went to support her mother Carol and hasn’t been close to Jelani since he was charged with the crime.
Nicki has rapped about her older brother in the past, including on 2014’s “All Things Go.” “I know Jelani will always love me, and I’ll always love him,” she raps. “And I’m just his little sister, not Nicki Minaj when I’m around him.”
She never testified during the trial despite claims made by her brother’s defense team that she would.