R. Kelly was attacked at the Chicago Metropolitan Correctional Center Wednesday, according to the singer’s attorney.
Steve Greenberg confirmed Thursday with a statement on social media that the Grammy-winning singer was assaulted in what some media outlets are reporting as a “jailhouse beatdown.”
“Yesterday we were told that an inmate had attacked R Kelly at the MCC in Chicago. We received conflicting reports as to the extent of his injuries,” Greenberg wrote on Twitter. “We have not been provided any information from the jail, nor has Mr. Kelly called. We are hopeful that he was not seriously injured.”
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The attorney added that he wants the court to release Kelly on bail because the prison system can’t guarantee his safety.
“Regardless, it is time to release Mr. Kelly. The government cannot ensure his safety, and they cannot give him his day in court. We should not incarcerate people indefinitely because we cannot provide them with due process!” he added.
A report by the New York Post said Kelly has now been moved to solitary confinement after the incident. The publication added that Kelly suffered “minor injuries, nothing broken” after a disgruntled inmate — furious over lockdowns caused by Kelly” — entered his cell and started attacking him.
A federal judge recently denied a request for Kelly to be released due to the coronavirus pandemic.
R. Kelly is currently awaiting trial on child pornography, racketeering and obstruction of justice charges. He faces federal charges in Chicago and Brooklyn, as well as state charges in Minnesota and Illinois.
