PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Gary Busey allegedly grabbed the buttocks of two women and tried to undo the bra of another during his appearances at the Monster-Mania Convention in Cherry Hill earlier this month, according to a criminal complaint.
Two women and the father of another accuse the 78-year-old actor of criminal sexual offenses in the complaint.
Busey, who lives in Malibu, California, was scheduled as a featured guest for all three days of the annual convention over the weekend of Aug. 12 through 14.
Two of the women were taking a picture with Busey when he allegedly put his face near one of the women’s breasts, then tried to remove her bra, the complaint says. He then grabbed the buttocks of the second woman.
The next day, a man reported Busey to police, claiming he grabbed his daughter’s buttocks while also taking pictures with the actor.
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Busey denied some of the actions after police contacted him. However, according to the complaint, he asked officers to apologize to the victims and talk them out of moving forward with the accusations. He also told detectives that it is sometimes possible to accidentally touch someone.
Busey was charged on Friday with two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, one count of attempted criminal sexual contact and one count of harassment, Cherry Hill police said Saturday.
Monster-Mania Convention said in a Facebook post that after attendees complained, an unspecified “celebrity guest was removed from the convention and instructed not to return.”
“Monster-Mania also encouraged the attendees to contact the police to file a report,” the company said, adding that behavior that compromised the safety and well-being of attendees would not be tolerated. “Monster-Mania will continue to assist the authorities in any and every way possible.”
Busey is widely known as a character actor, largely in supporting roles, though he came to attention and was nominated for an Oscar for best actor for playing the title role in the 1978 film “The Buddy Holly Story.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.