The singer was arrested while he was walking his dog.

R Kelly has been arrested on federal sex trafficking charges, the US attorney has revealed.

Kelly was walking his dog near his home in Chicago at 7pm local time when he was arrested.

US attorney spokesperson James Fitzpatrick said in a statement that Kelly had been arrested on a total of 13 counts including child pornography, enticement of a minor and obstruction of justice.

It isn’t yet clear whether these charges relate to previous charges levelled against the singer, who was released on $100,000 bail in June after pleading not guilty to 11 counts of sexual assault and abuse. Those charges were said to have taken place against a girl aged between 13 and 16 between May 2009 to January 2010.

It has yet to be revealed where Kelly is being held or when he will appear before a charge. But it is expected that Kelly will appear in court in New York to face these latest charges, after New York police and the department of homeland security worked together to arrest Kelly last night.

Kelly, 52, was found not guilty on child pornography charges in 2008.

In February, Kelly pleaded not guilty to sex-related charges in Illinois involving four women. Three of the women were minors when the abuse is alleged to have occurred.

The recent series of charges against Kelly occurred after a TV documentary, Surviving R Kelly, was screened by Lifetime. In the programme, seven women including Kelly’s ex-wife Drea Kelly accused the singer of emotional and sexual abuse.

Kelly has vigorously denied all allegations leveled against him