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E. Jason Wambsgans-Pool/Getty ImagesR. Kelly is continuing to maintain his innocence in light of a slew of new sexual assault charges.
Thursday morning, the embattled singer returned to a Chicago court where he pleaded not guilty to nearly a dozen new counts of sex-related felonies, including four aggravated criminal sexual assault charges, according to ABC’s WLS-TV. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 30 years. According to prosecutors, Kelly had been sexually abusing the accuser for years.
The singer’s lawyer Steve Greenberg claims the accuser in these new charges is one of the four women from his highly-publicized case from February.
“It’s the same case, it’s just they changed what they charged him with,” Greenberg said. “It’s the same facts.”
In February, Kelly was charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse for allegedly abusing four women, three of whom were underage at the time. He has pleaded not guilty and since been released on $1 million bond.
In spite of the new charges, the 12 Play artist’s legal team says they are confident the singer will be proven innocent.
“You heard the judge say the same bond, same evidence and we expect the same result,” Greenberg said. He noted that Kelly is currently focused on returning to the stage.
“I think they’re working on that and hopefully he’ll be able to perform,” Greenberg added. “I know he performed at a private party this past weekend; he was very good. The man’s got a lot of talent.”
Kelly is due back in court on June 26.
