Michael Avenatti, Celebrity Lawyer Who Helped Bring New Charges Against R. Kelly, Has Been Arrested On Alleged Extortion Charges From Nike

If the name Michael Avenatti sounds familiar, then it’s most likely from his cases, most recently with R. Kelly. He is now facing his own legal troubles with Nike.

Avenatti is helping to bring new charges against R. Kelly, following a newly resurfaced tape of him having sex with another underaged girl. Avenatti is representing a client who knows who the young girl is. “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,” Avenatti said.

Recently, Avenatti was arrested in New York minutes after he tweeted that he would be revealing a “major high school and college basketball scandal “perpetrated by Nike.

Nike released a statement to CNBC, saying that they “will not be extorted or hide information that is relevant to a government investigation” and that it “firmly believes in ethical and fair play, both in business and sports, and will continue to assist the prosecutors.”