R Kelly charged with sexually abusing under-age girls
R KELLY, the R&B singer, has been charged in Chicago with 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse involving at least three under-age girls, prosecutors said yesterday.
The charges come after years of allegations directed at the musician, accusing the now 52-year-old of sexual misconduct involving women and under-age girls. Through his lawyers, he has consistently denied them. The singer, whose legal name is Robert Kelly, is one of the top-selling recording artists of all time. He has won multiple Grammys, including for his hit song, I Believe I Can Fly.
A judge in Cook County, Illinois, has approved an arrest warrant for the singer after he was charged by prosecutors yesterday.
The charges relate to four victims, at least three of whom were minors aged between 13 and 16 whom he allegedly abused between 1998 and 2010, prosecutors said. The age of the fourth victim was not provided.
In a press conference yesterday, Kim Foxx, the Cook County state’s attorney, outlined the charges against Kelly and said the singer was expected to appear in court today for a bond hearing.
Kelly faces between three to seven years in prison on each count if convicted, Ms Foxx said. If found guilty in all 10, a judge could decide that the sentences run consecutively, with the prospect of up to 70 years behind bars. Probation is also an option under the statute. Steven Greenberg, Kelly’s lawyer, said that he had not been notified that his client had been charged and stressed that Kelly had always denied any wrongdoing.
In 2008, a jury acquitted Kelly of child pornography charges that stemmed from a video prosecutors alleged showed him having sex with a girl as young as 13.
Michael Avenatti, the lawyer best known for representing Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress, announced last week that he had recently given Chicago prosecutors new video evidence of the singer allegedly having sex with an under-age girl.
Mr Avenatti, who is representing several clients linked to the singer, applauded prosecutors yesterday for filing charges. “The day of reckoning has arrived,” he said in a tweet.
The singer has denied allegations of sexual misconduct for years. They included those made in a recent documentary called Surviving Kelly, which revisited old accusations and brought new ones to light.
The new charges come less than two months after Ms Foxx said she was “sickened” by the accounts described in the documentary and made a public appeal for accusers to come forward.
Gloria Allred, who represents two of Kelly’s accusers, said: “The days of running and hiding his victimisation of women from the criminal justice system have now come to an end.”
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