Rapper Nelly Arrested Near Seattle for Alleged Sexual Assault

SEATTLE — Police arrested the rapper Nelly early Saturday after a woman said he raped her on his tour bus in a town outside Seattle, an accusation the Grammy winner's attorney staunchly denied.

Cmdr. Steve Stocker, a spokesman for the police department in the town of Auburn, Washington, said Nelly, whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., was in jail Saturday after being arrested at about 4:37 a.m. in his tour bus at a Walmart.

Police said in a statement the woman called 911 to report being sexually assaulted by Nelly on the tour bus.

He will have his first appearance before a judge "at some point," Stocker said. Nelly was scheduled to perform in Ridgefield, Washington, on Saturday night.

His manager, Juliette Harris, did not immediately respond to an email asking about his scheduled performance.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussia’s secrecy after a mysterious plague lab death raises global alarm

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAfter surviving a botched lethal injection, Christa Pike faces unprecedented legal battle

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHunger in a land of plenty: Major food banks face ‘heartbreaking’ need, NBC News survey finds

FOR SUBSCRIBERSInflation and tariffs push U.S. holiday spending projections to a record $1.7 trillion

FOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat happened inside the room where officials tried to execute Christa Pike by lethal injection

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHow we reported the saga of the CIA officer and his gold-bar stash

FOR SUBSCRIBERSBrad Raffensperger gears up to oversee his final election in Georgia

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDiddy is punished following NBC News report on his VIP life in prison and contraband cellphone use

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘Too young to vote, old enough to be tear gassed’: French protesters’ anger swells

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDOJ gets aggressive in suing states that challenge Trump’s immigration policies

FOR SUBSCRIBERSJustice Department seeks criminal charge for former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘I just want to hold him’: USS Lincoln sailor to meet his 10-month-old son as ship docks

FOR SUBSCRIBERSSenate candidates run on raising Social Security taxes for higher incomes to prevent benefit cuts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussian operation that used ChatGPT tricked schools, a politician and media, OpenAI says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump administration’s deal with Nevada fuels data center fight in governor’s race

Slide 1 of 1

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussia’s secrecy after a mysterious plague lab death raises global alarm

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAfter surviving a botched lethal injection, Christa Pike faces unprecedented legal battle

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHunger in a land of plenty: Major food banks face ‘heartbreaking’ need, NBC News survey finds

FOR SUBSCRIBERSInflation and tariffs push U.S. holiday spending projections to a record $1.7 trillion

FOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat happened inside the room where officials tried to execute Christa Pike by lethal injection

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHow we reported the saga of the CIA officer and his gold-bar stash

FOR SUBSCRIBERSBrad Raffensperger gears up to oversee his final election in Georgia

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDiddy is punished following NBC News report on his VIP life in prison and contraband cellphone use

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘Too young to vote, old enough to be tear gassed’: French protesters’ anger swells

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDOJ gets aggressive in suing states that challenge Trump’s immigration policies

FOR SUBSCRIBERSJustice Department seeks criminal charge for former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘I just want to hold him’: USS Lincoln sailor to meet his 10-month-old son as ship docks

FOR SUBSCRIBERSSenate candidates run on raising Social Security taxes for higher incomes to prevent benefit cuts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussian operation that used ChatGPT tricked schools, a politician and media, OpenAI says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump administration’s deal with Nevada fuels data center fight in governor’s race

Slide 1 of 1

Nelly performed at the White River Amphitheater in Auburn on Friday night. He's on tour with the country band Florida Georgia Line.

Related: Fans #SaveNelly After IRS Makes It 'Hot in Herre' for Rapper

At 12:23 a.m. Saturday, after that show, he sent out a tweet that said in part: "its (sic) really you against the whole world because the whole world don't know you exist."

Nelly's attorney, Scott Rosenblum, called the rape claim a "completely fabricated allegation."

"Our initial investigation clearly establishes this allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness. I am confident, once this scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges. Nelly is prepared to address and pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation," Rosenblum said in an email.

Nelly is a three-time Grammy winner, including for the song "Hot in Herre," which won the best male rap solo performance award in 2002.

The song has been sampled and re-recorded by other artists and is ranked No. 21 on a Rolling Stone magazine list of top summer songs. Nelly is also known for the hits "Air Force Ones," "Dilemma" and "Over and Over." He recently appeared in a recurring guest role on the BET comedy series "The Real Husbands of Hollywood" and in 2005 he starred in the film "The Longest Yard."

The following year he shared a Grammy for the song "Shake Ya Tailfeather" with Murphy Lee and Sean Combs.

Nelly is also a minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets.