Why YouTube star Austin Jones is now barred from the Internet
YouTube singing star Austin Jones was released from jail to home confinement on Thursday, but he will be barred accessing the internet until his felony child pornography case is resolved, says the Chicago Sun Times.
The 24-year-old singer with reportedly millions of followers on YouTube and Vine, mostly teens and mostly female, was arrested at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport Monday and charged with two counts of felony child pornography. He has been charged with using his internet fame to lure underage girls to send him sexually suggestive videos.
After a hearing Thursday, Jones was released on a $100,000 bond to the custody of his mother, who lives in suburban Chicago. Jones will be under strict confinement and has been denied access to the internet until his charges are resolved. He is due back in court soon to enter a plea.
He had been on a concert tour and was returning home to Chicago when he was arrested.
Monday’s arrest was not the first time that Jones has gotten in trouble over his relationship to his young female fans. In 2015, says Rolling Stone, he was accused of asking underage girls to send him twerking videos. The controversy came to light when one or more young women filed a change.org petition seeking Jones’ removal from the Vans Warped Tour lineup because of his alleged actions. Rolling Stone said he was kicked off the tour, and Jones later made a video addressing the matter.
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