Jelani Maraj was furious after his 11-year-old stepdaughter told her teachers that she had been raped. According to testimony by the girl’s mother who was married to Maraj. Maraj, who is the older brother of Nicki Minaj, has been charged with raping the 11-year-old girl.
The New York Daily News reports that Jacqueline Robinson, Maraj’s ex-wife, shared how she discovered that her child was being sexually abused by the man she trusted. Robinson told the jury that she noticed her daughter acting strange weeks before the allegation surfaced.
Robinson said the girl had become distant and quiet and never elaborated on why she was bothered. But on Dec. 1, 2015, Robinson received a call from Nassau County Child Protective Services about her daughter. They told her that she needed to meet with a caseworker. When she met with the caseworker, Robinson was allegedly told that Maraj had been sexually abusing the 11-year-old girl.
Once Maraj discovered that the girl told a school caseworker about the alleged abuse, he became extremely upset, according to Robinson. He yelled and screamed at the girl and asked what was said.
Robinson’s testimony came after harrowing testimonies by the victim’s 10-year-old brother and a DNA expert. The girl’s younger brother told the jury that he caught Maraj engaged in a weird action with his sister. When he walked downstairs, the boy said that his sister’s panties were at her ankles and Maraj’s underwear was near his knees. He ran upstairs after witnessing the abuse. Following the abuse, the boy said that Maraj threatened him and slapped him 10 times in the face. He said that Maraj told him that he would never see his mother again if he told anyone.
Also, DNA expert, Erika Ziemak, of the Nassau County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed evidence about Maraj and the victim. The expert discussed semen that was found on the child’s pajamas. Ziemak said the semen was consistent with Maraj’s DNA. He said it was “less than a 1 in 348 billion” chance that the DNA on the pajamas belonged to someone else.
There were rumors that Nicki Minaj would testify, but her publicity team released a statement that said that she would not take the stand in her brother’s defense.
