Disgraced recording artist R. Kelly was arrested again on Thursday night, this time on new (but familiar) charges.
The singer, who has faced various sexual misconduct allegations spanning over two decades, is now charged with sex trafficking in New York as well as attempting to influence a case in Atlanta, CNN reported.
The arrest occurred in Chicago while Kelly was reportedly walking his dog, according to a source familiar with the incident. The singer’s latest arrest comes just after a 13-count indictment was returned Thursday in the Northern District of Illinois that included charges of child pornography and obstruction of justice, according to Joseph Fitzpatrick, the district’s assistant U.S. attorney.
Kelly’s Thursday night arrest was facilitated by the New York Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and other federal partners.
Prior to Kelly’s most recent arrest, the 52-year-old had been free on a $1 million bond set in February. That month, the singer was charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse involving four alleged victims, three of whom were underage at the time of the assault. Kelly pleaded not guilty to the charges, which spanned from 1998 to 2010. The singer left Chicago’s Cook County Jail after posting the $100,000 bail less than three days after he was arrested, only to be arrested and jailed again the following month for failing to pay his ex-wife $161,000 in child support.
Kelly was indicted by a grand jury on 11 more charges in May, including aggravated criminal sexual assault and criminal sexual assault. The singer has repeatedly denied all allegations of sexual misconduct.
“Mr. Kelly has declared his innocence from day one,” said the singer’s crisis manager, Darrell Johnson, who he has been working with the R&B star for six months, according to NBC Chicago. “I’ve seen nothing, and I do mean nothing, that would lead to any type of guilt.”
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