![Nicki Minaj’s Brother Jelani Maraj Found Guilty of Child Rape](http://townsquare.media/site/625/files/2017/11/nicki-minaj.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Nicki Minaj’s Brother Jelani Maraj Found Guilty of Child Rape
Nicki Minaj's brother, Jelani Maraj has been found guilty of felony predatory sexual assault on a child.
Jurors on Thursday (Nov. 9) convicted Maraj of sexually assaulting his former stepdaughter in a Baldwin home, Newsday reports. The trial lasted a month and the defense claim the allegations came in an attempt to extort $25 million from Nicki Minaj.
Prosecutors alleged Maraj began abusing his former stepdaughter when she was 11 and raped her repeatedly between April and November 2015 while her mother was at work. During the trial, forensic expert Erika Ziemak testified that Jelani’s semen was found on the 11-year-old girl’s clothes. She maintained that it was “less than 1 in 348 billion chance” that the DNA could belong to someone else. “Jelani Maraj’s DNA profile is consistent with the stain on the pajama pants." On Oct. 23, the victim’s 10-year-old brother took the stand. He told jurors how he accidentally walked in on them and saw her pants “around her ankles.” When asked by prosecutors what happened next, he replied, “I thought it wasn’t right. It looked weird to me, so I ran upstairs.”
Maraj reportedly showed no emotion when the verdict was read. The Mineola jury also convicted him of endangering the welfare of a child.
As of now, Nicki Minaj hasn't commented on the verdict. Maraj's lawyer plans to appeal. He faces 25 years in prison.
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