Jackson to face child sex charges

Charges are expected to be filed against pop star Michael Jackson today, in connection with allegations that he sexually molested a teenage cancer survivor.

Law-enforcement officials confirmed that charges would be filed nearly a month after police raided Jackson’s Neverland ranch in California.

The 45-year-old megastar, who is on bail of nearly €2.8m, has called the accusations a “big lie”.

A formal felony criminal complaint will be filed against Jackson at Santa Barbara County Superior Court in Santa Maria, California.

It is not clear what the exact charges will be, but Jackson was arrested and booked on suspicion of “multiple counts” of “lewd and lascivious conduct with a child under 14“.

Jackson, who is due to appear before a court in California on January 9, has been at an unknown location for the last month, believed to be Las Vegas.

Because of the level of media interest in the case a special information website has been set up by the District Attorney’s office.

The office has even appointed a public relations firm to handle the volume of inquiries.

Jackson’s Neverland ranch in California was searched last month after a complaint by a 14-year-old that he had been molested by the star.

Jackson surrendered to police on November 20 and was led into a Santa Barbara sheriff’s office, before having his mug shot taken.

Since then he has said in a statement: “As you know, the charges recently directed at me are terribly serious. They are, however, predicated on a big lie.”

Meanwhile, Jackson’s parents told an ITV documentary that Jackson was innocent, claiming that prosecutors were trying to “humiliate” their son.

Joe and Katherine Jackson also pledged to adopt Jackson’s children if they were taken away from him.

Mrs Jackson said: “People just misrepresent Michael when they say these ugly things about him. He loves children.”

Jackson’s brother Jermaine has claimed that the pop star was mistreated when in police custody.

He did not elaborate and the claim was denied.

Jackson has three children – Prince Michael I, six, and Paris, five, from his three-year marriage to Debbie Rowe and Prince Michael II, born in 2002, whose mother has never been publicly identified.

Doubts have been raised about the credibility of Jackson’s accuser in recent days – social workers in California investigated the same concerns earlier this year and called them “unfounded” in a confidential memo which was leaked.

But prosecutors in Santa Barbara have vowed to press on with the case.

District Attorney Tom Sneddon said he did not “go looking” for the case, but said “it came to us“.