R. Kelly Was Allegedly Attacked By A Frustrated Cellmate

According to TMZ, the cellmate was angry about the prison being on lockdown due to R. Kelly protestors.

TMZ is reporting that R. Kelly was attacked by a fellow inmate in Chicago's Metropolitan Correctional Center recently. According to "federal law enforcement sources with direct knowledge," the inmate walked into Kelly's cell and began punching him. TMZ sources allege that the altercation stemmed from frustrations over the facility being placed on lockdown due to protests over R.Kelly's incarceration.

A spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons tells TMZ it can't comment on individual inmates' conditions of confinement or medical status. Attempts to contact R. Kelly's attorney Steven Greenberg provided no further info. According to the report, however, Kelly was examined by a doctor who found no broken bones or serious injuries.

In the past two weeks, three of R. Kelly's associates have been hit with felony charges over incidents of threatening and bribing his accusers. Kelly's former manager Donnell Russell was charged with threatening physical harm by interstate communication after an incident in 2018, where he threatened a shooting at the New York screening of Surviving R. Kelly at the NeueHouse Theater.

R.Kelly previously pushed to be released early from jail while awaiting trial due to the COVID-19 pandemic. His request was denied by a judge who still believes he's a flight risk.

"[Kelly] is currently in custody because of the risks that he will flee or attempt to obstruct, threaten or intimidate prospective witnesses," the judge said. "The defendant has not explained how those risks have changed."