Witness friend 'in R Kelly video'

Mr Kelly faces up to 15 years in jail if convicted

A witness at the trial of US R&B star R Kelly has identified her childhood friend and the singer in a child sex video Mr Kelly is accused of making.

Simha Jamison, 24, told the Chicago court that she recognised her friend, now aged 23, from her face.

She said the two of them often met Mr Kelly when they were around age 12.

Mr Kelly denies filming himself having sex with an underage girl and his lawyer said neither his client nor the alleged victim are on the video.

Mr Kelly is charged with 14 counts relating to child pornography in connection with the 26-minute video featuring explicit acts of sex between an adult man and a girl believed to be aged about 13.

'Cash gifts'

In the second full day of the trial, Ms Jamison said her friend had first introduced Mr Kelly as her godfather and that they often visited him at his recording studio and a Chicago basketball court.

She said Mr Kelly would give the girl money - "no less than $100 (£50) and no more than $500".

Profile: R Kelly

Her friend often stayed on with the singer after Ms Jamison went home, she said.

The friend has said it is not her in the video and has refused to testify for the prosecution.

Another witness, a former investigator with the Illinois attorney's office, said the room used in the video resembles a hot tub room in a Chicago home once owned by Mr Kelly.

During the cross-examination, the defence suggested that the video may have been digitally altered.

The video is believed to have been made between 1998 and 2000.

The 41-year-old star, whose hits include She's Got That Vibe and I Believe I Can Fly, faces up to 15 years in jail if convicted.

The tape was originally posted to the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper in 2002. The paper then handed it to police.