Chris Brown could face up to a year in prison following criminal charges over pet monkey

Chris Brown‘s troubled history with the law continues.

The “Forever” singer, 29, was recently charged with two criminal counts of having a restricted species — in this case, a capuchin monkey — without a permit. Each carries a maximum sentence of six months in prison, TMZ reports. The outlet says the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office is taking Brown to court on Feb. 6, and that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife is also investigating.

Patrick Foy, captain with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, tells PEOPLE they obtained a search warrant earlier this year and visited Brown’s home in January. The singer wasn’t home at the time, but others there relinquished the monkey at that time. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife then filed their evidence with the LA City Attorney, who then filed charges on Wednesday.

Brown’s attorney and the LA City Attorney did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

RELATED: A Complete History of Chris Brown’s Legal Struggles

Brown first shared that he’d grown his family by one more primate when he posted an Instagram video of his daughter, Royalty, now 4, playing with a baby monkey in December 2017.

The clip shows the little girl holding her new pet, who’s wrapped in a white blanket and wearing a diaper. Off-camera, her father jokes that she has the same size head as the monkey, whose name is Fiji.

The Grammy winner is no stranger to legal troubles.


RELATED: Chris Brown Comments on Ex-Girlfriend Rihanna’s Instagram —  Is This Bible Verse Her Response?

Most notably, in 2009, he was sentenced to five years probation and 180 days of community labor after pleading guilty to felony assault for beating then-girlfriend Rihanna. Seven years later, he was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon (charges were never filed), and in 2017, his ex-girlfriend Karreuche Tran was granted a restraining order against him.

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