‘It was not an accidental touching’
Gary Busey has pleaded guilty to one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact.
The actor, 81, entered his plea during a virtual court appearance before Judge Gwendolyn Blue, Court TV reported Thursday.
Though he initially denied groping two female fans during a photo opp at the annual Monster-Mania Con at the Doubletree Hotel in Camden, NJ, in August 2022, he has now admitted to purposefully inappropriately touching a woman at the horror film convention.
“It was not an accidental touching,” Busey confessed when questioned by Blue.
Prosecutors will dismiss the remaining charges against him, which included three additional counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact and one count of attempted fourth-degree criminal sexual contact.
The “Lethal Weapon” star faces one to five years of probation and must pay fines; he will be sentenced during a virtual hearing next month.
During Thursday’s court appearance, his attorney, Blair Zwillman, argued that the indictment should be dismissed, claiming that police failed to question certain witnesses, which made their investigation “faulty.”
However, Blue confirmed that witness statements were properly presented to the grand jury.
Busey’s reps did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
Days after he was first charged, the “Under Siege” star insisted to a paparazzo outside a gas station in Malibu, Calif., that “nothing happened” at the convention, adding that the encounter with the two women “took less than 10 seconds.”
“Then they left, then they made up a story that I assaulted them sexually when I did not,” he claimed, making sure to note that he doesn’t “carry any regrets.”
Notably, Busey has been caught dropping his pants in public several times in recent years, with his rep once explaining that “perhaps” he just needed to relieve himself.
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