R. Kelly could soon be facing indictment according to law enforcement officials after a new video of him allegedly assaulting an underage girl emerged.
According to CNN, the alleged victim can be seen in the video referring to “her body parts as 14 years old” whilst a senior law enforcement officer has reportedly told Jim DeRogatis for The New Yorker that the video “may soon lead to [Kelly’s] indictment in Illinois.”
DeRogatis added: “a law enforcement official said that an indictment is pending and Kelly could be arrested soon.”
Speaking to CNN, Kelly’s lawyer, Steven Greenberg, said: “We are unaware of any new information involving Mr Kelly…we have not been contacted by anyone. We have not been informed about any new information by anyone and we have not been contacted by law enforcement.”
Lawyer Michael Avenatti, who is representing a man he calls a “whistleblower” against Kelly, reports that he handed the tape to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office in Chicago last weekend. Speaking about the tape, he said: “My client knows the identity of the girl and R. Kelly.
“He identified the two of them on the videotape. He worked for and has known R. Kelly for decades and he met the girl on a number of occasions.”
Earlier today, Avenatti tweeted out a further statement about the tape and added: “Included in the evidence we recently uncovered and recovered is a VHS videotape of Mr. Kelly engaging in multiple sexual assaults of a girl underage. This tape, which is clear…has never previously been publicly disclosed or, until recently, provided to law enforcement.”
In response to press inquiries, attached is a stmt regarding our work on the R. Kelly matter since April, including the discovery of new critical video evidence establishing his guilt. We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that this predator is brought to justice. pic.twitter.com/D0dGFzgXlX
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) February 14, 2019
The controversial artist has received a multitude of complaints in light of the recent Surviving R Kelly documentary which featured testimonies from a slew of women who accused the star of sexual assault. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, police in Georgia recently confirmed that Kelly was facing a criminal investigation after the TV series aired. Sources claim that the Fulton County District Attorney’s office was looking into allegations of sexual abuse, and have contacted multiple women as a result of the allegations made in the docuseries. It was also reported last month that the FBI were investigating further claims against Kelly.
Kelly was also recently dropped by his record label according to reports. It came after a protest banner was flown over Sony headquarters in California on January 12, demanding that the singer be dropped from the label after facing multiple sexual misconduct allegations. The banner, which was organised by the women’s group Ultraviolet, took aim at RCA, saw a plane fly above their Culver City offices, alongside a banner that read: “RCA/Sony: Drop Sexual Predator R. Kelly.”