The lawyer representing a porn star Stormy Daniels in a legal battle with US President Donald
Trump on Thursday, said his office has previously unreleased footage of R&B
superstar R. Kelly having sex with a young girl, AFP reports.
Michael Avenatti said his team discovered the graphic tape
as representatives of multiple clients linked to accusations against the
American singer, who has faced allegations of sexual assault for decades.
However, Kelly denied the latest allegations on Thursday via
his lawyer Steve Greenberg, who said "I have not been contacted by anyone
connected with law enforcement, nor has R. Kelly."
In a statement Avenatti said he gave the "new critical
video evidence" against the artist to the Cook County State's Attorney in
Chicago, where Kelly, 52, lives.
"We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that
this predator is brought to justice," Avenatti, 47, tweeted.
The attorney has become a public figure since filing a
lawsuit for adult film actress Stormy Daniels in March last year seeking to
invalidate a 2016 non-disclosure agreement over an alleged affair with Trump in
2006.
He said the events shown in the footage fell within the
state of Illinois' statute of limitations.
The state's attorney's office told AFP it "cannot
confirm or deny an investigation" but The New Yorker magazine, citing a
law enforcement official, said an indictment is pending and Kelly could face
arrest.
The tape, which is nearly 45 minutes long, is not the same
video that saw Kelly face 21 counts of child pornography charges in 2002, a
case in which he was acquitted six years later.
CNN, which obtained a copy of the new footage, described it
as "clear and explicit." The network said two scenes show a naked man
who appears to be Kelly engage in several sex acts with a female who calls out
"daddy." The audio captured with the images suggests the girl is 14
years old.
In a statement the artist's lawyer accused women who have
spoken out against Kelly of doing so to "make a buck" and dismissed
the latest allegations: "Mr. Kelly denies that he has engaged in any
illegal conduct, of any kind whatsoever."
"He would like to be able to continue to write and sing
and produce and perform," Greenberg said, adding that Kelly is working on
an album. In this age of hashtags we are too quick to rush to judgment simply
because something is associated with a hashtag. A hashtag does not make claims
credible," the lawyer said.
For decades the artist - real name Robert Sylvester Kelly -
has faced lawsuits and accusations over child pornography, sex with minors,
operating a sex cult and sexual battery.
In 1994 he wed his protege Aaliyah, the late R&B star
who was 15 at the time.
Kelly, then 27, had produced the teenage singer's debut
album titled "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number." Their marriage was later
annulled, and Aaliyah died in a plane crash in 2001.
Despite unsettling claims against him, the decorated
musician - known for hits including "I Believe I Can Fly" -- has
continued to perform and maintain a solid fan base.
But last month's release of an explosive docuseries entitled
"Surviving R. Kelly" has shed new light on the R&B luminary's
checkered past, while a #MuteRKelly movement aimed at preventing his music from
airing has gained steam.
The artist's record company RCA dropped him last month following
the release of the docuseries.
High-profile women's rights attorney Gloria Allred is also
representing several women with accusations against the superstar.
"Mr. Kelly is a predator and a criminal who has preyed
on young, vulnerable girls for far too long," Avenatti said. "The
time has come for him to finally be held accountable for his actions."
