Jared Drake Bell, famous for his role on iconic Nickelodeon series Drake & Josh, has been arrested and charged over attempted child endangerment.
The children’s TV show star was indicted on Friday over one count of attempted endangering children and one count of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles, according to records obtained by E!News. Bell has plead not guilty to those charges.
The alleged crime took place around December 2017, when Bell performed at a Cleveland nightclub and violated his duty of care against a 15 year old girl.
A Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office spokesperson told E!News that a police investigation “revealed that the victim, who had established a relationship with Bell several years prior, attended his concert in December 2017.”
“While there, Bell violated his duty of care and, in doing so, created a risk of harm to the victim. The investigation also revealed that months leading up to the concert, Bell sent the victim inappropriate social media messages,” the spokesperson continued.
Bell was later released from police custody after posting a $2,500 bond, submitting a DNA sample and agreeing to have no contact with the alleged victim, as per the bond agreement.
Last year, Drake Bell’s ex-girlfriend Melissa Lingafelt accused the actor of verbal and physical abuse in a series of TikToks (some of which have now been deleted).
“First, I would like to start out with saying I don’t really care if anyone believes me as this is my story and my life and something I went through,” Lingafelt confessed on TikTok.
“It wasn’t until recently that I actually realised that abuse is something that all women have to go through. When I started dating Drake, I was 16. I was home-schooled, I moved in with him, I was singing. It wasn’t until about a year when the verbal abuse started.”
She also recounted an incident where Bell dragged her down the stairs, and her face “hit every step on the way down.”
https://www.tiktok.com/@jimiono/video/6866881790871719173?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.insider.com%2F&referer_video_id=6860331801223695621&refer=embed&is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1
Lingafelt also alleged that Bell was predatory toward underage girls, and has responded to his arrest on TikTok.
https://www.tiktok.com/@jimiono/video/6969995495972343046?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.insider.com%2F&referer_video_id=6860331801223695621&refer=embed&is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1
Drake Bell’s first pre-trial has been scheduled for June 23 via zoom.
Help is available.
If you require immediate assistance, please call 000.
If you’d like to speak to someone about sexual violence, please call the 1800 Respect hotline on 1800 737 732 or chat online.
Under 25? You can reach Kids Helpline at 1800 55 1800 or chat online.
