Singer R. Kelly denied bail on U.S. charges of sex crimes over two decades

R&B singer R. Kelly pleaded on Tuesday not guilty to a raft of federal charges accusing him of running a scheme to force women and girls to provide sex for him and others, and a judge ordered that he remain in jail without bail. U.S. District Judge Leinenweber in Chicago said the main reason he was denying Kelly bail was obstruction of justice charges, part of a multi-count indictment unveiled on Friday in Chicago and New York.

Prosecutors brought 18 indictments against the Grammy award-winning artist with allegations that he preyed on teenagers and young women, forcing them into sexual acts. Kelly and his entourage are accused of paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, and using intimidation and threats to keep the girls and women under his control and buy their silence over two decades.