Share
STOCKBRIDGE, Ga. — A Georgia man involved with a recent documentary detailing abuse allegations against R. Kelly told police the singer’s manager threatened him.
Timothy Savage told an officer on Jan. 3 that Don Russell had texted him saying it would be best for him and his family if the documentary didn’t air, according to a Henry County police report.
Savage said he and his wife were involved with Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly” series. The series, which aired earlier this month, looks at the singer’s history and allegations that he has sexually abused women and girls. Kelly, who turned 52 on Tuesday, has denied wrongdoing.
Russell called Savage while the officer was there and Savage put the phone on speaker so the officer could listen, the police report says. It went on to say that Russell accused Savage of lying to Lifetime and said that if Savage continued to support the series, Russell and Kelly would be forced to release information that would show Savage was a liar and that would ruin him, his reputation, his business and his family.
Contact information for Russell could not be immediately found.
The report says the case is being forwarded to the criminal investigations division for review.
There’s No Active Investigation of Kelly
In Kelly’s hometown Chicago, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx addressed reporters Tuesday afternoon after her office had been inundated with calls about the allegations in the documentary, some tied to his Chicago-area home.
“I was sickened by the allegations. I was sickened as a survivor. I was sickened as a mother. I was sickened as a prosecutor,” she said.
But Foxx also said there’s no active investigation of Kelly and launching one would require victims and witnesses.
Gerald Griggs, an Atlanta-based attorney who represents Savage and his wife, said he has been contacted by both the Fulton County district attorney’s office in Atlanta and prosecutors in Chicago. The Fulton County investigators “haven’t confirmed or denied an investigation,” he said, but they asked him Monday for contact information for witnesses.
Savage and his wife have said repeatedly that Kelly has kept their daughter from contacting them since 2016.
Chris Hopper, a spokesman, for the Fulton County district attorney’s office, declined to comment.
Acquitted of All 14 Counts of Child Pornography in 2008
A Cook County jury acquitted Kelly of all 14 counts of child pornography in 2008. Prosecutors had argued a videotape showed him engaged in graphic sex acts with a girl as young as 13. Kelly and the alleged victim, in her 20s at the time of the trial, denied it was them in the video.
“Ten and a half years after he was found innocent (at trial of child pornography charges) and to fill reality TV time — someone comes up with another round of stories,” he said. “No one has found any sex slaves or underage girls because there aren’t any.”
Greenberg also said it was inappropriate for a state’s attorney to characterize allegations she’d seen on TV, prior to charges or even an investigation.
“Who makes their assessment of the evidence based on reality TV?” he said.
Kelly rose from poverty on Chicago’s South Side to become a star singer, songwriter and producer. Despite his legal troubles a decade ago, he still retains a following.
Kelly won a Grammy in 1997 for “I Believe I Can Fly,” and is known for such raunchy hits as “Bump N’ Grind” and “Ignition.”
RELATED TOPICS:
Gomez Guilty of Murdering Los Hooligans Bass Player
9 hours ago
Biden Says It Was a Mistake to Say He Wanted to Put Trump in a ‘Bull’s-Eye’
9 hours ago
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Appears to Confirm Delay in Aug. 8 Robotaxi Unveil Event to Make Design Change
12 hours ago
Smittcamp Asks Court to Drop His Lawsuit Against Controversial NW Fresno Project
13 hours ago
Measure P Arts Grants Spark Debate and a Meeting Tonight
13 hours ago
Tedford Exits Fresno State Football. Tim Skipper Is the Next Bulldog Up.
13 hours ago
Trump Receives Enough Delegate Votes to Officially be Republicans’ Nominee
14 hours ago
Man Dies After Rescuing His 2 Children in Mississippi River
8 hours ago
Categories
![](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/15173402/A-photo-provided-by-Jesse-Pope-shows-Cody-Jay-Pope-right-with-him-in-2012.-The-authorities-found-the-body-of-Cody-Jay-Pope-a-41-year-old-Minnesota-man-who-had-disappeared-two-days-earlier-after-1024x538.jpg)
Man Dies After Rescuing His 2 Children in Mississippi River
![](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/15150557/AP24197467333843-1024x576.jpg)
Is Inflation Finally Corralled? Powell Says Federal Reserve Believes It’s Close
![](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/15171647/Los-Hooligans-court_1280X720-1024x576.jpg)
Gomez Guilty of Murdering Los Hooligans Bass Player
![](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/15172819/President-Joe-Biden-arrives-to-speak-to-members-of-the-media-in-Rehoboth-Beach-Del.-about-the-shooting-incident-at-Donald-Trumps-rally-in-Pa.-on-Saturday-July-13-2024.-President-Biden-said-o-1024x538.jpg)
Biden Says It Was a Mistake to Say He Wanted to Put Trump in a ‘Bull’s-Eye’
![](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/15144853/AP24197697589922_-1024x576.jpg)
Tesla CEO Elon Musk Appears to Confirm Delay in Aug. 8 Robotaxi Unveil Event to Make Design Change
![](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/15120621/lawsuit-against-respiratory-care-facility_1280X720-1024x576.jpg)
Smittcamp Asks Court to Drop His Lawsuit Against Controversial NW Fresno Project
![The Wines of Fresno: Tony Kirk, Birdstone Winery](https://gvwire.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/12152749/Tony-Kirk-Birdstone-Winery-016-1-1024x576.jpg)