R&B superstar R. Kelly has turned himself in to Chicago police, after being charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sex abuse against four victims, three of them minors.
The development came after a judge approved a no-bail arrest warrant for the 52-year-old, who for decades has faced accusations of child pornography, sex with minors, operating a sex cult and sexual battery.
According to the police, he is due to appear in court this afternoon.
Kim Foxx — the state’s attorney for Cook County, which includes Chicago — told journalists the alleged crimes occurred between 1998 and 2010 some of them between the ages of 13 and 16. The felony charges carry three to seven years of prison time per count, Foxx said.
Kelly’s lawyer, Steve Greenberg has dismissed the charges, insisting that the accusations are old and false.
“I think all of the women are lying. Everybody’s trying to profit off of R. Kelly,”
he said.
This makes it the second time Chicago prosecutors have charged Kelly with a sex crim. He was acquitted of 21 count charge of child pornography in 2008. As we reported earlier, one of the victims has alleged that they were threatened into silence hence his victory.
“Today marks a watershed moment in the 25 years of abuse by this predator,” said high-profile lawyer Michael Avenatti, who is representing two victims, two parents and two whistle-blowers linked to Kelly. He has also been responsible for the release of the unknown footage of Kelly having sex with a 14-year-old girl, a tape he has given to the Cook Country State’s Attorney.
Kelly’s renewed trouble started last month after a docu-series entitled “Surviving R. Kelly” once again brought accusations against him to the fore, while a #MuteRKelly movement aimed at preventing his music from airing has gained steam.
“Black women and girls who come forward with allegations of sexual violence are too often silenced or shamed,” said the American Civil Liberties Union on Friday, responding to the new charges.
“It’s well past time for them to be heard.”
“He should never walk free another day in his life,” Avenatti said Friday. “He will rightfully die in a prison.”
