Drake Bell appeared in court via Zoom on Wednesday and submitted a guilty plea to charges relating to a girl he met online and who attended one of his concerts in Cleveland in 2017 when she was 15-years-old.
He pleaded guilty to felony attempted child endangerment and a misdemeanour charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.
The sentencing of Drake, 34, is scheduled to take place on July 12, also in Cleveland.
Drake initially pleaded not guilty to the charges before changing his plea at the hearing on Wednesday.
Ian Friedman, Drake’s defence attorney, said that it will be revealed on July 12, when Drake is sentenced as to why the plea was changed.
(Image: Cuyahoga County Jail)
The girl in question contacted Toronto police in October 2018, Tyler Sinclair, a spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Officers then contacted Cleveland police who investigated the matter.
Sinclair has said that the attempted child endangerment charge related to the concert where the singer “violated his duty of care”.
Sinclair said that there was a risk of harm to the victim, adding that Drake had “developed a relationship” online several years before the 15-year-old attended the concert.
(Image: Getty Images for Thirst Project)
The spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office further explained that the disseminating harmful material charge concerns “inappropriate social media messages” sent to the girl.
The girl will be allowed to give a victim impact statement at the sentencing.
Drake was indicted by a grand jury on May 21 for the two charges.
The court set his bond to $2,500 (£1,800) on conditions that he would not contact the victim. He posted bail the same day.
(Image: Nickelodeon)
Yesterday, (June 23), Drake pleaded guilty to both charges.
On July 12, Drake could face a sentence ranging from probation to two years in prison.
Drake is famously known for starring on the Nickelodeon show Drake & Josh, with his co-star Josh Peck. He appeared on the show from its launch in 2004 before its final episode in 2007.
He started off as a child actor, before joining The Amanda Show briefly and ultimately landing his role on the children’s TV show Drake and Josh.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
