R&B star R Kelly on child sex charges

R&B star R Kelly, released from a Florida jail, reported to Chicago police today to face child porn charges stemming from a video that authorities say shows the Grammy winner having sex with a 13-year-old girl.

Kelly was accompanied by his lawyer Edward Genson when he walked into the Cook County Criminal Courts Building.

Police advised him of his rights before handcuffing him and taking him to a nearby police station to be charged. The singer said very little and appeared calm.

Genson was angry that police did not allow Kelly to be processed at the main courthouse.

‘‘I’ve never seen this happen in my life,’’ Genson said.

Kelly, who has been dogged by allegations of sexual misconduct in civil lawsuits, was indicted by a Cook County grand jury this week on 21 counts of child pornography stemming from a video-tape that has circulated across the country in recent months.

Kelly, 35, has denied he is the man in the video. If convicted, he could be sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined £70,000.

The singer was arrested at a house he rents near Davenport, Florida. He was jailed overnight before being released on £500,000 bail. The Florida judge ordered that he have no contact with minors outside of his family.

Chicago police and Cook County prosecutors said they interviewed about 50 witnesses in their investigation before determining the tape showed Kelly and an underage girl. FBI forensics experts found the tape to be authentic, they said.

‘‘The claims in this case are unfounded,’’ Genson said after the Florida hearing. ‘‘The charge is that there’s a young lady under the age of 18 on that tape and there isn’t.’’

Cook County State’s Attorney Richard Devine said the video was made in November 1997 or later and that the girl was born in September 1984.

Kelly, whose first name is Robert, is the focus of at least four lawsuits, three of which accuse him of having sex with underage girls. He has acknowledged settling two of the lawsuits regarding underage sex, but his lawyers have said they will fight the third.

The singer is known for hits ranging from the Grammy-winning anthem I Believe I Can Fly to sexually charged songs such as Bump’n Grind, Feelin on Yo Booty and Your Body’s Callin.

He is married to a former dancer from his touring troupe. They have a newborn son and two young daughters.