Auburn Police in Washington arrested rapper Nelly Saturday morning on an accusation that he raped a woman on his tour bus. He has yet to be charged, but the police department did book him in a local jail.
“At 3:48 AM a female called 911 to report that she was sexually assaulted by a male, who is known as the rapper ‘Nelly,’” the department said in a statement. “The alleged assault was reported to occur on the tour bus that was parked at the listed location. Nelly had performed at the White River Amphitheater just hours before.”
A police spokesperson told Q13 Fox that the tour bus was parked behind a Walmart SuperCenter and that the woman called from the area.
TMZ first reported the incident. Their story claims that the woman specifically named Nelly as the person who raped her.
“Officers say they had probable cause to arrest the rapper and he was booked into the SCORE jail in Des Moines for Rape 2nd Degree,” Q13 Fox further reported. Their correspondents have been releasing more information on Twitter, including a detail that Nelly, real name Cornell Haynes Jr., apparently met the woman after a show.
Nelly’s attorney tells HuffPost that his team is looking into the matter and believes it to be a false accusation.
“Nelly is the victim of a completely fabricated allegation,” attorney Scott Rosenblum told HuffPost over email. “Our initial investigation, clearly establishes, this allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness. I am confident, once this scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges. Nelly is prepared to address and pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation.”
The department’s statement claimed they had enough cause for the initial booking. “After Patrol Officers investigated the incident, at 4:37 AM Nelly was taken into custody.”
Nelly was slated to perform with Florida Georgia Line in Ridgefield, Washington, Saturday night. The two acts have been on tour.
HuffPost also reached out to the Auburn Police Department and Florida Georgia Line, but did not immediately hear back.
UPDATE: The Auburn Police Department released Nelly from custody later on Saturday. He tweeted about the incident:
