Multiple reports, including Lifetime’s recently released documentary Surviving R. Kelly, have alleged that the warehouse in question is a site where women have lived with Kelly against their will and without contact from friends or family.
Though the building inspection is not connected to any criminal investigation, an Illinois state’s attorney recently held a press conference soliciting information about Kelly’s alleged sexual misconduct. Prosecutors in Georgia have also sought information about the singer in the wake of Surviving R. Kelly.
City officials in Chicago have revealed more details about last week’s emergency inspection of R. Kelly’s recording studio. The inspection reportedly turned up 67 building code violations, including an illegal steam room and sauna, fire hazards, and evidence that the two-story warehouse property, zoned for commercial use, is being used as a residence.
Inspectors submitted the findings during a hearing today. “It looks like people are living there, and that’s not good,” said Cook County Judge Patrice Ball-Reed, per the Chicago Sun-Times. “Someone is living there.”
Ball-Reed ordered that the building be used only between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. and barred access to the second floor, which is currently accessible through a wobbly staircase unfixed to the wall, according to inspectors. Each code violation may warrant a $1,000 fine that the building’s owner could pass on to Kelly, who rents the space. Kelly also faces eviction from the building due to nearly $175,000 owed in back rent and other fees. The singer was ordered to pay these costs by yesterday; it’s unclear whether he did.
