R. Kelly arrested on child pornography, other federal charges in Chicago: US attorney

[Teh One Who Knocks]

By Edmund DeMarche, Bradford Betz | Fox News




R. Kelly, the hit-making R&B singer who has been dogged by sex abuse allegations for more than a decade, was arrested Thursday on child pornography and other charges in Chicago, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois told Fox News.

Kelly was arrested on a 13-count federal indictment, which included child pornography, enticement of a minor and obstruction of justice charges, the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, Kelly's former manager Derrel McDavid and employee Milton "June" Brown also were indicted on allegations they helped Kelly pay thousands of dollars to recover child pornography tapes and pressure witness in Kelly's 2008 trial, according to the Chicago Tribune.

New York's WNBC-TV, which broke the story, reported earlier that Kelly was arrested by New York Police Department detectives and Department of Homeland Security agents and was expected to be brought to New York.

The spokesperson said Kelly's charges relate to offenses that occurred in the Northern District of Illinois and did not know the origin of reports linking Kelly's arrest to crimes in New York.

The singer was being held in federal custody. His arraignment date is to be determined.

Kelly has for decades been the subject of sexual abuse allegations -- some involving minors. The R&B singer was acquitted in 2008 of child pornography charges stemming from a videotape that allegedly showed Kelly engaging in sex acts with a 13-year-old girl.

He was charged in February with 10 state counts of sexual abuse involving four victims, including three minors. He pleaded not guilty and was released from Chicago's Cook County Jail after posting bail. More charges were filed against him in May.

The indictments against his former manager and employee were disclosed in a Twitter message by Jason Meisner, a reporter for the Chicago Tribune.

Emails from Fox News to the NYPD and DHS were not immediately returned.