UPDATE March 24 at 1:04 p.m. EDT: Government authorities in Dubai are denying that R. Kelly was scheduled to perform concerts in their country and meet the ruling royal family, the Al Maktoum family.
"Authorities in Dubai have not received any request for a performance by singer R. Kelly nor are there any venues that have been booked," the government's Dubai Media Office said in a statement, according to The Associated Press. The statement added that the singer "has not been invited by the Dubai royal family for a performance."
The statement comes after WLS reported that an attorney for Kelly requested he be allowed to leave the U.S. to perform from April 17 to April 19 in Dubai. Kelly faces charges of 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse for allegedly assaulting three girls and one adult woman.
Steven A. Greenberg, Kelly's lawyer, said the request was made as his client had performances in the country. He denied there was an invite from the Al Maktoum family.
"Mr. Kelly had a signed contract with a legitimate promoter, and any information that was included in the motion to travel was from that contract," Greenburg said in a statement to The AP. "We did not say he was invited by the royal family, but the contract did provide that he would make himself available to meet with them."
Original story:
Singer R. Kelly appeared Friday morning in a Cook County courthouse as he faces accusations of sexual abuse
A lawyer for Kelly, who was charged last month with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, filed a motion requesting he be allowed to leave the U.S. to perform from April 17 to April 19 in Dubai, WLS-TV reported. Kelly's attorney, Steven Greenberg, asked a judge Friday to decide later on the motion, to give Kelly's team time to gather more information to present to the court.
After Friday's hearing, a publicist for Kelly said he was no longer planning to travel to Dubai in April, WMAQ-TV reported. The reason for the cancellations was not immediately clear.
Kelly is scheduled to appear in court again on May 7.
Greenberg said in a court filing that Kelly has been unable to find work in the United States amid backlash for the allegations against him, according to the Chicago Tribune. Cook County State's Attorney Kim Fox said last month that the charges against Kelly stem from incidents alleged to have occurred between 1998 and 2010 with four victims, three of which were under the age of 17.
"The request is outrageous, and I would be shocked if it is granted," Michael Avenatti, an attorney representing two of Kelly's accusers, told WLS-TV. "Were he (to) be permitted to leave, he would never return, and justice would be denied."
Kelly, one of the top-selling recording artists of all time, has several times over the years been accused of sexual misconduct, allegations that he’s consistently denied.
Jurors acquitted Kelly of child pornography charges at a 2008 trial. Those charges stemmed from a video prosecutors alleged showed of Kelly having sex with a girl as young as 13.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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