R. Kelly Hospitalized After Alleged Prison Overdose Amid Murder-For-Hire Scheme

R&B singer and convicted sex trafficker R. Kelly, 58, was emergency-transported to Duke University Hospital on June 13 after collapsing in his cell at the Federal Correctional Institute in Butner, North Carolina. Court records claim he was given a lethal overdose of anxiety medication while in solitary confinement, leading to alarming symptoms including fainting, dizziness, and vision loss.

Attorneys contend the overdose was intentional. They say prison staff administered excessive doses and directed Kelly to take the pills, which nearly killed him. Medical scans revealed life-threatening blood clots in both legs and the lungs—conditions which doctors said required surgery and extended hospital care. Despite this, prison officials allegedly returned him to solitary confinement just two days later.

Amid the medical emergency, lawyers also revealed startling allegations: a murder-for-hire plot orchestrated by federal prison employees. Affidavits from fellow inmate Mikeal Glenn Stine—ailing and linked to a notorious white supremacist group—claim he was promised freedom in exchange for killing Kelly. Stine says he ultimately backed out and alerted Kelly to the plan.

These revelations follow an emergency motion filed in court requesting Kelly’s immediate transfer to home confinement. His team argues the prison environment has become life-threatening, citing the overdose and purported murder plot. Prison authorities have yet to comment, citing ongoing litigation.

Federal prosecutors have strongly opposed Kelly’s plea. In court filings, they described him as “a prolific child molester” who refuses to accept responsibility for his crimes. They argue his new claims are manipulative attempts to avoid due punishment .

R. Kelly is serving a 30-year sentence for racketeering and sex trafficking out of New York, along with a concurrent 20-year sentence for child pornography and enticement charges from a separate Chicago conviction. Recent appeals to the Supreme Court were denied.

A federal judge is expected to review Kelly’s request for home confinement during an emergency hearing scheduled for June 20. The court will weigh medical evidence against serious allegations of prison malfeasance and Kelly’s criminal history.