The Lifetime series "Surviving R. Kelly" is partly responsible for the recent arrest of R. Kelly.
According to Page Six, a Homeland Security Investigations agent decided to investigate the singer after watching the disturbing docu-series in January.
"It was an agent on our trafficking unit who was watching that Lifetime show, 'Surviving R. Kelly,'" the Homeland Security Investigations source told the New York newspaper. "They were looking at the victims' interviews," he said, and realized that "this is so much bigger than [what] he has previously been charged with."
"It was just from watching these interviews in this documentary," added the source, who said that agents then traveled to interview the alleged victims from the documentary.
The embattled singer was arrested in Chicago on federal sex crimes charges in two states.
In the the 13-count indictment from the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Northern District of Illinois, charges include child porn, enticement of a minor and obstruction of justice.
In a separate five-count federal indictment out of the Eastern District of New York filed on Friday, R. Kelly is charged with racketeering and several violations of the Mann Act and allegations of forced labor.
The federal indictments accuse R. Kelly and members of his team of recruiting women and girls to engage in illegal sexual activity with the singer and later paying victims and witnesses to cover up his crimes.
"It's something that he's never been charged with before," the Homeland Security source told Page Six, referring to the racketeering charge.
R. Kelly's residence was searched on Friday while he was being held in a Chicago detention center.
"The charges arose from alleged conduct in the Northern District of Illinois as well as the Eastern District of New York," R. Kelly's attorney Steve Greenberg said in a statement. "The conduct alleged appears to be largely the same as the conduct previously alleged against Mr. Kelly in his current State indictment and his former State charges that he was acquitted of. Most, if not all of the conduct alleged, is decades old."
He continued, "Mr. Kelly was aware of the investigations and the charges were not a surprise. He had already assembled a team of outstanding federal litigators. He and his lawyers look forward to his day in court, to the truth coming out and to his vindication from what has been an unprecedented assault by others for their own personal gain. Most importantly he looks forward to being able to continue to making wonderful music and perform for his legions of fans that believe in him. A bail hearing will be held early next week, at which time Mr. Kelly hopes to be released from custody."