Well it's official, the pied piper of R&B is behind bars and this time it just may stick..
This past Thursday, singer R. Kelly was arrested on 13 different federal charges, which include crimes such as sex trafficking, obstruction of justice, producing child pornography and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government.
TMZ reports that the 'I believe I can fly' crooner has been denied bail since being taken into custody. Kelly was previously arrested back in February of 2019 on similar charges with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. He later posted bail, which was set at $1 million dollars, and was subsequently released after spending only two nights in jail.
However, this time around, former members of Kelly's team have now come forward with evidence that have contributed to his latest arrest, resulting in additional charges. Thats right reportedly, people from Kelly's inner circle have been cooperating with authorities and have provided over 20 sex tapes that show the singer engaging in sexual acts with minors.
With these new developments, this just might be the ticket to putting away the predatory pied piper for good.
Following the new federal indictments, R. Kelly has maintained that he is innocent.
Here's what his attorney Steve Greenberg has to say regarding the singer (Via TMZ):
Greenberg also says that R. Kelly has voluntarily shown up to every court hearing in his current case, despite the fact the prosecution insists he's been a flight risk. He hasn't run, and Greenberg hit the point home by saying, "How could he flee? He has no money." Greenberg does note that R. Kelly's Trump Tower rent is paid up through December or January.
On the allegation that R. Kelly is a threat to minors to this day, Greenberg says all but one of the allegations against Kelly dates back to the '90s, and that "there's no evidence that he's a risk to minors at all at this point." Greenberg also says there's no evidence of witness tampering.
One more argument from Greenberg here ... he says the fact that R. Kelly can't read or write would make it difficult to go over discovery with him in jail. He also says Kelly makes for a difficult prisoner because of his notoriety and implications that come with that.
The judge seemed to side with prosecutors, though, saying the child porn charge alone comes with a "presumption of detention." He was ordered to be held in jail without bond.