Pop superstar Michael Jackson will be charged with multiple counts of child molestation and has been ordered to surrender to California authorities, a police spokesman told a news conference this evening.
But authorities refused to reveal any details of the case
against the pop superstar.
"An arrest warrant for Mr Jackson has been issued on
multiple counts of child molestation. The bail amount on the
warrant has been set at $3 million.
"There is a warrant outstanding and in a very short period
of time there will be charges filed against Mr. Jackson,"
Santa Barbara County Sheriff Jim Anderson told a news conference at which he and other officials declined to say if one or more children were involved. They did say, however, that they had "a
cooperative victim."
Court TV, a cable channel, reported yesterday that
allegations had been made against the self-styled King of Pop
by a 12-year-old boy who had stayed at Jackson's fairy
tale-like Neverland Ranch near Santa Barbara.
Jackson, who was in Las Vegas yesterday, has never
previously been arrested. He was believed to be in the gambling
mecca today while his lawyers arranged terms of his
surrender.
Sheriff Anderson said he had every reason to believe that
the singer "is willing to cooperate with us".
Dozens of police armed with a search warrant spent more
than 14 hours at Jackson's sprawling Neverland ranch in central
California yesterday.
Investigators declined to give details of the case or to
name the alleged victim. But they said their criminal
investigation had been underway for two or three months, adding
that they had a "cooperative victim in this situation."
Sheriff Anderson told reporters that Jackson had been "given an
opportunity to surrender himself to Santa Barbara authorities
within a specific period of time."
In 1994, Jackson reached a multimillion-dollar out-of-court
settlement with the family of a 14-year-old boy who accused him
of sexual molestation. A criminal investigation of that case
was closed without charges being brought once the alleged
victim refused to testify. Jackson denied any wrongdoing.