In this June 26, 2019 file photo, R&B singer R. Kelly, center, arrives at the Leighton Criminal Court building for an arraignment on sex-related felonies in Chicago. Federal prosecutors announced charges Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020, against three men accused of threatening and intimidating women who have accused Kelly of abuse, including one man suspected of setting fire to a vehicle in Florida. (AP Photo/Amr Alfiky, File)
Federal prosecutors announced charges Wednesday against three men accused of threatening and intimidating women who have accused R&B singer R. Kelly of abuse, including one man suspected of setting fire to a vehicle in Florida.
A longtime friend of the indicted singer offered to pay a victim $500,000 to keep her from cooperating in Kelly's prosecution, authorities said, while a manager and adviser of Kelly threatened to release sexually explicit photographs of a woman who sued Kelly.
The Grammy-award winning musician has denied ever abusing anyone and has pleaded not guilty to dozens of state and federal sexual misconduct charges in Illinois, Minnesota, and New York.
The charges range from sexual assault to heading a racketeering scheme aimed at supplying Kelly with girls. Kelly also is accused of having unprotected sex with a girl in 2015 without disclosing he had herpes.
Prosecutors described a third man accused of intimidating witnesses as being related to a former Kelly publicist. They said Michael Williams, 37, of Valdosta, Georgia, traveled to Florida in June and set fire to an SUV parked outside a residence where one of Kelly's victims was staying.
Williams also conducted Internet searches for "the detonation properties of fertilizer and diesel fuel, witness intimidation and witness tampering and countries that do not have extradition with the United States," authorities said in a news release.
A message was sent to Williams' attorney seeking comment.
Netflix beat its earnings projections for Q4 — but the stock still plummeted as the streaming pioneer cut back on its forecast for future subscribers. Michael Robinson, the chief technology strategist at Money Map Press, joined Cheddar to discuss the report and what's driving the downward pressure on its shares. "It's the growth is really what's worrying people," he said. "'A' we have slowing economic growth, and 'B' we've got slowing growth for this company, as 'C' we have an increase in competition."
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Sanchali Pal, Founder and CEO of Joro, joins ChedHER to discuss how her app can help users track, reduce, and automatically offset the carbon footprint of their purchases, and gives advice for other women seeking careers in climate.
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Terrell Jermaine Starr, senior fellow with the Atlantic Council and host of the Black Diplomats podcast joins Cheddar News to discuss Russia's attempt to invade Ukraine.
Aditi Mayer, a climate justice activist joins Cheddar News to discuss her partnership with DoSomething.org and how a new PSA is working to shine a light on environmental racism.
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