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.
Jill and Carlo discuss the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial and the reaction around the country. Also, a bad day for vaccinations, the latest stuff from Apple, Netflix hits a wall, and more.
As vaccine efforts roll out across the U.S., in-person events are slowly resuming, but many cannabis companies have chosen to host their events online or throw hybrid in-person and virtual events.
Fire crews have largely contained a big wildfire on the slopes of Cape Town’s Table Mountain.
Derek Chauvin's fate is in the hands of 12 of his peers, COVID tests now available OTC, Capitol cop's cause of death, NASA's Mars copter takes flight, and how Americans' views on cannabis have changed on this 4/20.
Despite a measurable impact that the COVID-19 pandemic made on carbon emissions throughout 2020, researchers are warning that to hold back climate change, nations need to keep pushing for reductions.
Garry Kasparov is launching an online platform called Kasparovchess that will allow chess fans to play and learn online.
Two federal agencies are sending teams to investigate the fatal crash of a Tesla near Houston in which local authorities say no one was behind the wheel.
All Americans who want a COVID vaccine can now get one. The question is whether that will be enough to get us to herd immunity. Plus, safety concerns for Peloton's treadmill, Tesla's Autopilot, and more news from the weekend.
Nine lives notwithstanding, killing a cat in a hit-and-run soon could become illegal in New Hampshire.
Developers and architects have been searching for creative solutions to zoning regulations. What started as a creative solution is now the standard blueprint for all modern apartment construction.
