A US FEDERAL judge has given the green light to move jailed R&B singer R Kelly to New York City to go on trial this summer after several delays.

Kelly has been held in Chicago, where he is facing a potential second trial in the autumn in a separate federal case related to a sprawling sex crimes investigation.

The trial in Brooklyn federal court had been put off because of the pandemic.

But at a virtual hearing, US District Judge Ann Donnelly told lawyers that there are courthouse protections in place that would allow it to finally go forward on 9 August.

The judge also said the government should start preparations to move Kelly to a New York jail, most likely the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn.

The exact timing was unclear.

Prosecutors in Brooklyn allege Kelly led an enterprise made up of his managers, bodyguards and other employees who helped him recruit women and girls for sex.

A jury is expected to hear evidence from alleged victims, each identified in court papers only as “Jane Doe”.

Kelly has denied the sex trafficking allegations.

One of his lawyers, Steve Greenberg, said that his client is looking forward to the trial.