Nicki Minaj's brother heading for divorce

The wife of Nicki Minaj's brother has filed for divorce as he fights felony rape charges.

Jelani Maraj, 37, was arrested in New York in December (15) after an unnamed 12-year-old girl alleged he had been raping her for months, with the last encounter occurring just one day prior to his arrest.

He was subsequently charged with three counts, including first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child and predatory sexual assault, and is due to return to court for a hearing in September (16).

Maraj has pleaded not guilty to all charges, but the allegations were enough for his wife of less than a year, Jacqueline Robinson, to call time on their relationship.

She filed for divorce in a Nassau County court on 18 August (16), just four days before the couple's first anniversary, reports DailyMail.co.uk. The split is labelled as "Uncontested Matrimonial", meaning both parties have agreed to end the union.

Jelani and Jacqueline exchanged vows in a lavish ceremony at the Coral House in Baldwin, New York on 22 August, 2015, and Nicki was on hand to toast the newlyweds - and pick up the bill.

At the time, the Anaconda hitmaker took to Instagram to share a photo of herself and the groom, captioning it: "I would cross the ocean for u. I would go & bring u the moon. Promise u. For u I will. I love my brother so much man. Can't believe I cried during his wedding and his first dance like a punk. May God bless him and his union."

"Tonight has been one of my favorite nights of all time," she added. "I do anything to see my brothers smile... Jelani, I love u more than you'll ever comprehend."

The star has not commented on her brother's legal issues, but she did post the $100,000 (£76,150) bail for her brother in December (15).

According to TMZ.com, she put up two of her homes as collateral for the bail bond. The houses, located in Baldwin, New York, are occupied by her brother and her mother.

Jelani faces a lengthy sentence if convicted of the charges - predatory sexual assault alone carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.