Nelly
US rapper Nelly has been accused of raping a woman on his tour bus in the early hours of Saturday morning in Washington Getty

Rapper Nelly took to social media on Saturday (7 October) to defend his innocence after rape allegation against him surfaced. The rapper has said that the accusations made against his are "false and defaming".

Nelly, who has been accused of raping a woman on his tour bus in the early hours of Saturday morning in Washington, has claimed that he is "completely innocent".

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On Saturday (7 October), the 42-year-old singer, whose real name is Cornell Haynes, while defending his innocence wrote on Twitter that he was "shocked" to be a target of "false allegation".

"Let me say that I am beyond shocked that I have been targeted with this false allegation. I am completely innocent. I am confident that once the facts are looked at, it will be very clear that I am the victim of a false allegation," he wrote.

"I do want to apologize to my loved ones for the embarrassment and for putting myself in a situation where I could be victimized by this false and defaming allegation."

Nelly has thanked his fans for their "unwavering support" and promised to pursue all legal avenues available at his disposal to clear his name from this "false allegation".

"In other words y'all know damm well I ain't do no dumm S^*t like this..!! Love ..!!!!" he wrote and added, "To be absolutely clear. I have not been charged with a crime, therefore, no bail was required. I was released, pending further investigation."

Speaking to TMZ, Nelly's lawyer said: "Nelly is the victim of a completely fabricated allegation. Our initial investigation clearly establishes the allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness."

"I am confident, once the scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges. Nelly is prepared to pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation."