R. Kelly Now Faces Up To 30 Years In Prison With 11 More Counts Of Sexual Abuse

Disgraced singer R. Kelly is now facing 11 new charges of sexual abuse regarding one of the four original women involved in his court case. The new charges are even more serious criminal counts that may send him to prison for up to 30 years.

When initially charged in February, R. Kelly, whose legal name is Robert Kelly, faced 10 counts of aggravated criminal sex abuse against four women, two of which were minors at the time. This meant he faced up to seven years in prison. The Grammy winner pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

His new 11-count indictment concerns a woman identified only as J.P., who he allegedly met in 2008 when she attended his trial on child pornography charges. Prosecutors say they began a sexual relationship after meeting again the following year when she was just 16-years-old.

With Thursday's indictment, the performer now faces a prison sentence of six to 30 years if convicted, as four of the serious counts charge the singer with aggravated criminal sexual assault with is a Class X felony, reports the Chicago Tribune.

It is alleged that in January 2010, Kelly forced himself on J.P. while physically battering her. He also allegedly threatened or endangered her life.

“They’re more serious charges, but it doesn’t change the facts,” R. Kelly's attorney Steven Greenberg said Thursday about the new indictment. “It doesn’t change how we’re going to approach the case.”

In March, R. Kelly sat down with Gayle King on “CBS This Morning” in an explosive interview, and said, in part, while holding back tears, “Stop it. You all quit playing! Quit playing! I didn't do this stuff! This is not me! I'm fighting for my [expletive] life! Y'all killing me with this [expletive]! I gave you 30 years of my [expletive] career!”

He continued, “Thirty years of my career! And y'all trying to kill me? You killing me, man! This is not about music! I'm trying to have a relationship with my kids! And I can't do it! Y'all just don't want to believe the truth! You don't want to believe it!”