According to new court documents filed by the lawyers representing singer and convicted sex trafficker R. Kelly, the artist recently overdosed on medication in prison and was rushed to the hospital.

Kelly was convicted in 2021 on racketeering and sex trafficking charges, resulting in a 30-year prison sentence. A year later, he was also found guilty of producing child sexual abuse imagery and child enticement.

The overdose incident occurred this past Friday, when Kelly collapsed in a federal prison in North Carolina and was taken to Duke University Hospital. The documents state that Kelly had recently been placed in solitary confinement and was given medication by prison staff, which left him feeling “dizzy” and “faint” in the days that followed. Kelly also claims that, as he was being transported to the hospital, he overheard prison staff saying, “This is going to open a whole new can of worms.”

Hospital staff ultimately determined the episode to be a life-threatening overdose and ordered Kelly to remain hospitalized for two days.

In response, Kelly’s lawyers filed an emergency motion requesting that he be released to home detention, alleging that three Bureau of Prisons officials were planning to have another inmate kill him. Federal prosecutors swiftly denied the request, stating:

“Kelly now asks this court to release him from incarceration indefinitely under the guise of a fanciful conspiracy. Kelly’s motion makes a mockery of the harm suffered by Kelly’s victims.”

[via TheGuardian]