For over two decades, rumors about singer R. Kelly have been circulating around about him having inappropriate sexual relations with underage girls. But recently, a number of women and young girls have come forward with claims and stories of sexual misconduct in a variety of forms being shown in a published Buzzfeed article as well as the highly talked about “Surviving R. Kelly” docu-series on Lifetime.
Over the years, Kelly has been sued by multiple women accusing him of having sex with them when they were underage. He has consistently denied these accusations. Most of the cases, with the exception of the trial where he was acquitted, were settled out of court.
Now, all those cases, allegations and rumors have come to a head today, as prosecutors have officially charged R. Kelly (full name Robert Sylvester Kelly) with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving several women—at least three of them minors, according to multiple reports.
In today’s brief press conference, Cook County State’s Attorney, Kim Foxx, announced that the charges come from four women who say they have had relations with R. Kelly during the times of:
– May 1998 to May 1999
– September 1998 to September 2001
– February 2003 to February 2004
– May 2009 to January 2010
Foxx’s office said it has been inundated with tips after the top prosecutor urged victims to come forward. Meanwhile, a county judge issued a warrant for Kelly’s arrest Friday morning, court records show.
A bond hearing has been scheduled for Saturday, February 23, 2019 afternoon at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, a Foxx spokesman confirmed.
As the Chicago Sun-Times reports, “A Cook County [IL] judge has approved a no-bail arrest warrant for embattled R&B superstar R. Kelly. … The alleged crimes span from 1998 to 2010, records show. The minors were between 13 and 16, prosecutors allege.”
In 2017, a BuzzFeed report claimed that Kelly had been keeping several young women against their wills as part of a “sex cult,” though he was not formally charged based on those allegations.
High-profile attorney Michael Avenatti said in 2019 that he had given Foxx’s office a VHS tape showing Kelly engaging in sex years ago with an underage girl.
“The newly unearthed footage, which lasts 42 minutes and 45 seconds, is clear and explicit. … What is on the video mirrors…