Russell pleaded not guilty to the aforementioned charge and others relating to the singer in New York.
It is alleged that he made a phone call to a theater in Manhattan to stop a screening of Surviving R. Kelly on December 4, 2018. According to a criminal complaint in the Southern District of New York, he made a call into the theater that was showing the documentary to say that there was a gunman inside who wanted to blaze it. To these charges, his lawyer said that he also didn’t do it.
On Friday, an Assistant US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Nadia Shihata, said that while he originally pled guilty, he is currently in the middle of negotiating a plea deal.
“We will be sending a proposed plea agreement to the defendant this coming Monday,” Shihata said.
One of his other lawyers, Douglas Morris, declined to comment when news outlets reached out to him. Is R. Kelly concerned that Russell might spill the beans?
Nope. His attorney, Steve Greenberg, says that those charges have nothing to do with him and so they are not concerned.
“He’s charged with crimes that Kelly was not in any way involved in. If he chooses to plead guilty for his own actions, that’s between the government and his own lawyers,” Greenberg offered. “Anytime someone is charged in a criminal case there’s always the risk that they’re going to make something up to get themselves out of trouble. I can’t control that.”