Nicki Minaj’s brother, Jelani Maraj, was back in a Long Island courtroom Monday (November 6) where he stands accused of raping his 11-year-old former stepdaughter in 2015. During the trial, Nassau Assistant DA Emma Slane reportedly urged the jurors to “stand up” for the alleged victim.
“Today, you have the power to give her [the alleged victim] voice back,” Slane said, according to Page Six. “You have the power to stand up in a way her could not. For eight months, [she] was too scared to speak. For months … his violence worked. But by the luck of her baby brother looking for a pencil, we might not be here today.”
The brother of the alleged victim, who is now 13, was looking for a pencil when he allegedly saw Maraj and the girl together in the basement. He testified that her pants were down around her ankles.
“She told you how much it hurt, how scared she was, how much she cried,” Slane added. “You know a little girl is not capable of making that up.”
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Maraj’s defense attorney David Schwartz claims the accusations are an elaborate attempt by the alleged victim’s mother to extort money from her famous sister-in-law.
“It’s about money, it’s about revenge against that family,” Schwartz said. “(She) needed the wedding before bringing down the master plan and taking all of Nicki’s money and ruining his life. There are 25 million reasons why these people have carried on with lies from day one. The evidence of a shakedown is just overwhelming in this case.”
Prosecutor Slane countered that the family of the alleged victim has nothing to gain from Maraj, asserting “he’s got nothing.”
“Tell those two children you heard them,” Slane said. “Deliver the justice that is so desperately needed in this case. Hold him accountable. Find him guilty.”
