R. Kellyhas just ignited another fire.
The 52-year-old hit-making singer and producer, who isreportedly under investigationin the state of Georgia forsexual and physical abuse, is in jeopardy of losing his 8,000-square-foot music studio in an industrial property on the West Side of Chicago if he does not pay the thousands of dollars in rent that he owes within the next two weeks, according to theBlast.
Alleging that he missed two balloon payments and failed to pay his monthly rent, the owner of the building, Midwest Commercial Funding, filed an eviction lawsuit against him in July for breaking his contract, which guaranteed a 10-year lease at a monthly rate of $22,927.41. Kelly reportedly owes the company over $80,000 in arrears, the site reports.
The property, which is currently listed for sale at $3.9 million, was featured on Lifetime’s docuseriesSurviving R.Kellyas being a so-called“sex dungeon” and living quarters for young girls in what they referred to as a sex cult.
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TMZreports that cops visited the vacant recording studio on Tuesday to survey the vicinity after it gained publicity on the show.
Surviving R. Kelly— which aired on Lifetime from Thursday, Jan. 3 to Saturday, Jan. 5 — features wide-ranging interviews with Kelly’sfamily members, former friends and colleagues, but most notably, women who claim that for decades the hit-making singer and producer used his power and influence to sexually andphysically abuse womenand young girls.
R. Kelly.Gilbert Carrasquillo/FilmMagic
TheNew York Timesreports that investigators from the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office in Georgia contacted Gerald A. Griggs, the lawyer for Timothy and Jonjelyn Savage, on Monday. Timothy and Jonjelyn claim the singer is holding their daughter, Joycelyn Savage, against her will. The couple was interviewed in the docuseries, along withnumerous other women.
“We hope that it will turn into a fruitful investigation and it will result in the return of Joycelyn Savage to her family or, at the very least, that she start opening continuous conversations and interactions with her family like she had before she met Mr. Robert Sylvester Kelly,” Griggs told PEOPLE on Wednesday.
Chance Yeh/Getty
The Fulton County District Attorney’s Office has declined PEOPLE’s request to comment, as did the Atlanta and John’s Creek police departments.
TMZalso reported that the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office has opened an investigation into the allegations made in the docuseries, adding that investigators reached out toAsante McGee, who spoke to PEOPLE about her experience escaping from Kelly’s residence.
While no charges have currently been brought in Kelly’s other residence of Chicago, Cook County state attorney Kim Foxx helda press conferenceon Tuesday to encourage any victims to “please come forward.”
R. Kelly.Earl Gibson/Getty
“If we are going to take these allegations seriously — it isn’t one of those situations where it’s just forensics, we need actual witnesses and victims to have the courage to tell their stories,” she said. “We cannot do anything related to these allegations without the cooperation of victims and witnesses.”
In 2008, a Cook County jury found Kellynot guiltyon 14 counts of child pornography charges.
Foxx added that her office is talking to two families whose loved ones had been in contact with Kelly.
If you or someone you know think they are being abused, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or 1-800-787-3224 (TTY) now for anonymous, confidential help, available 24/7.
source: people.com
