Breaking news coming out of Chicago, as R. Kelly has been charged with ten counts of aggravated sexual abuse in Cook County on Friday (Feb. 22). The charges come after decades of allegations against the Grammy Award-winning singer involving the abuse or women and underage girls. The Chicago Tribune reports three of the charges “referred to a minor between the ages of 13 and 16.” The charges come one day after attorney Michael Avenatti, stated he recently gave Chicago prosecutors new video evidence of the singer having sex with an underage girl. There’s no confirmation if these charges are related to that new evidence in question.
During a news conference at 3 p.m. EST, Cook County State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx confirmed the charges and announced R. Kelly is set to appear in bond court on Saturday (Feb. 23). This is the first-time the 52-year-old has been charged since the airing of Lifetime’s documentary series Surviving R. Kelly, that featured interviews with alleged sexual abuse survivors. Since its airing the #MuteRKelly campaign started, and the singer was released by his label Sony Music earlier this year. Foxx said the sentencing range for aggravated sexual assault is up to seven years in prison. If convicted on all 10 counts, a judge could decide that the sentences run one after the other, and a sentence of up to 70 years in prison.
R. Kelly has been charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving four victims, Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx announced https://t.co/SqxMHmUqUE pic.twitter.com/k463r5WVFW
— CNN (@CNN) February 22, 2019
