R. Kelly Charged with 10 Counts of Aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse

UPDATE: R. Kelly turned himself in at a Chicago police station on Friday night, reports TMZ.

R&B singer R. Kelly has been charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse in Chicago's Cook County.

Court documents obtained by The Chicago Sun-Times indicate that Kelly's first court date is March 8.

The Chicago Sun-Times reveals that prosecutors met with a judge, who approved an arrest warrant for Kelly.

TMZ reports that Kelly will surrender to police tonight.

The Cook County State's Attorney Office announced the charges at a press conference on Friday.

Before the news conference, Kelly's attorney Steven Greenberg said that he hadn't been notified that his client had been charged. He has vehemently denied any wrongdoing by his client in the past.

The news comes weeks after celebrity lawyer Michael Avenatti handed over a sex tape to the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. The video allegedly shows Kelly having sex with a 14-year-old girl.

Avenatti told CNN last week, “My client knows the identity of the girl and R. Kelly. He identified the two of them on the videotape. He worked for and has known R. Kelly for decades and he met the girl on a number of occasions."

At the time, Greenberg told CNN, “We are unaware of any new information involving Mr. Kelly. We have not been contacted by anyone. We have not been informed about any new information by anyone and we have not been contacted by law enforcement."

Two women have testified for the grand jury. One of the women provided physical evidence to back up her claims that she was underage when she and Kelly had sex between 2008-2010, TMZ reports. The other woman also offered knowledge of Kelly's alleged encounters with underage girls, and corroborated claims made in the reality series “Surviving R. Kelly.”

Kelly has faced major backlash since the airing of “Surviving R. Kelly,” which accused him of assault, pedophilia, and running a sex cult.

Famed attorney Gloria Allred is representing two new accusers who have come forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Kelly, Latresa Scaff and Rochelle Washington. At an NYC press conference Friday, the women gave detailed accounts of the night they met up with Kelly when they were teenagers.

“Extra's” Tanika Ray recently sat down with some of alleged victims, who call themselves survivors, at Universal Studios Hollywood. Watch.