NEW YORK — A former “American Idol” contestant who went viral for kissing Katy Perry during his audition for the competition show has been arrested on child pornography charges, authorities in Oklahoma said Friday.
Benjamin Glaze, 26, was taken into custody Friday afternoon after cops found more than 700 images of videos of child sexual abuse material on his cellphone, the Tulsa Police Department said in a news release.
The investigation into Glaze began in April 2024, after the department’s Sexual Predator/Digital Evidence Recovery Unit received a tip about possible “criminal activity” involving the suspect.
“The report indicated that Mr. Glaze had possession of child sexual abuse material,” officials said.
After police obtained a search warrant for his residence, investigators recovered his smartphone, which was said to contain the illicit images.
Glaze was arrested Friday and booked into Tulsa County Jail. He has since been released on a $50,000 bond, TMZ reported.
Glaze made national headlines some six years ago after he was briefly kissed on the lips by popstar Katy Perry during his audition for “American Idol.” Perry, known for hits including “I Kissed a Girl and I Liked It,” served as a judge for the singing competition from 2018 through 2024.
During his audition, when the aspiring musician was asked if he had ever kissed a girl, he said he hadn’t because he’d “never been in a relationship” and couldn’t kiss a girl without being in one.
That’s when Perry motioned for him to come over to the judge’s table and jokingly kissed him on the lips.
While the then-19-year-old “Idol” hopeful didn’t advance in the competition, the scene quickly went viral.
Speaking with the New York Times shortly after the episode aired, Glaze said the kiss made him feel “uncomfortable immediately.”
“I was raised in a conservative family,” he said. “I wanted my first kiss to be special.”
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©2024 New York Daily News. Visit at nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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