New Pornographers Drummer Joe Seiders Arrested For Possession of Child Porn
Joe Seiders, the drummer for indie rock band the New Pornographers, has been arrested on possession of child pornography charges, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department confirmed in a press release Thursday.
Soon after the arrest, the band confirmed that Seiders, 44, is no longer a member of the group. 'Everyone in the band is absolutely devastated by the news of the charges against Joe Seiders — and we have immediately severed all ties with him,' the band said in a statement shared on social media. 'Our hearts go out to everyone who has been impacted by his actions.'
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The New Pornographers were formed in the '90s, and Seiders joined in 2014, playing drums and singing backup vocals on the band's most-recent three albums Whiteout Conditions, In the Morse Code of Brake Lights and Continue as a Ghost.
According to the Sheriff's Department, authorities were first dispatched to a Palm Desert business in the late afternoon on April 7th, speaking with an 11-year-old boy who said an unidentified male had recorded him on his cell phone while the boy was using the restroom. Two days later, authorities got a second report at the same location at just past 5 p.m., after an employee said that a man was 'entering and exiting the restroom with juvenile males at the business.' Authorities identified the man as Seiders and took him into custody.
Authorities obtained search warrants for Seiders' residence, cell phone and vehicle and found evidence implicating him in the two reported incidents, as well as other crimes, the release said. Authorities said Seiders was booked into Indio's John Benoit Detention Center for possession of child pornography, annoying/molesting a child, invasion of privacy, and attempted invasion of privacy.
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