Words by Jillian Bowe
Jury selection got underway on Wednesday in the child sex abuse case against Nicki Minaj‘s older brother, Jelani Maraj.
Maraj was arrested in December 2015 and charged with first-degree rape of a 12-year-old child and first-degree sexual conduct against a child in Long Island, New York. Maraj has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Nicki has put up the bond of $100,000 to have her brother released from custody and has pledged her full support according to his lawyer David Schwartz, according to Newsday.
Schwartz also hinted to the Long Island newspaper there was a hidden motive behind Maraj’s arrest and the accusations against him. Schwartz stated,
These are a bunch of lies. There’s a big, big motive to lie here, which I can’t get into right now. But these are false accusations.
At the pretrial court hearing on Tuesday, prosecutors disclosed the pajama pants with Maraj’s DNA on the groin area will be presented into evidence. The prosecution also requested State Supreme Court Justice Robert McDonald drop the less serious felony charge against Maraj.
While Nicki has remained mum on her brother’s legal woes, her brother’s attorney has stated she may attend his three-week trial even though she has yet to attend the pretrial hearings.
If convicted Maraj could face up to life in prison on the top charge against him.
