Originally from Colombia but now based in Seattle, controversial black metal band Inquisition have been dropped from their label Season of Mist. The decision was likely tied to recently resurfaced child porn charges that frontman Jason "Dagon" Weirbach allegedly pleaded guilty to in 2009. However, Weirbach has denied he ever pleaded guilty to such charges.
Season of Mist shared the following brief statement on its Facebook page:
It was a cryptic message, to be sure, but according to MetalSucks, the label made the announcement mere hours after it was reached out for comment about the aforementioned child porn charges.
In 2009, Weirbach reportedly pleaded guilty to child pornography charges in Washington. The charges are on public record, as demonstrated through official documents from the Superior Court of Washington for Snohomish County.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reportedly found an account uploading sexually explicit photographs of "young females in their early teens or pre-teens" to Photobucket in November of 2006. The account was allegedly traced back to Weirbach, who reportedly said he had been posing as a woman online to obtain the images.
There are a great deal of other extremely disturbing details in the MetalSucks report. Taking our content warning into account, you can read the piece here.
Prior to news of the child porn charges, Weirbach had been criticized for his alleged links to the neo-Nazi movement. Outside of Inquisition, he plays in a Nazi-themed band called 88MM who appeared on a compilation called Declaration of Anti-Semetic Terror [sic].
Weirbach has responded to the MetalSucks article with the following statement:
To all fans, supporters and close ones, I would like to clarify some horrific misinformation generated by the webzine Metalsucks of a personal matter of mine in 2007: First you must take into account, everything Metalsucks published is taken from court documents that state charges and accusations rather than what was proven or admitted in 2007. Second, I never plead guilty to the charges and the original charges were dropped after the courts examined all evidence. I am not a sex offender, and I was absolutely innocent of all charges. The plea bargain was something the prosecutor insisted on and for the defense was the best option to end a lengthy legal process. Also, the background check webpage circulating is not entirely correct, it is definitely not showing what the Police background check would show you.
With my fullest respect to you, please read my statement Metalsucks had told me they would publish:
I made a very unwise choice of actions in 2007 which got me into some legal problems. After the investigation was conducted, a year and a half later after the initial charges, the original charges brought against me were dropped and a plea deal was presented to me. The investigation determined I did not have anything that fell under the original charge.
The police report suggested I had deleted and obstructed evidence which I deny to have done, however the obstruction charge was still part of the plea deal as was the other charge mentioned in this article. That second charge is related to viewing pornography in a public area, and again was taken as part of the plea deal. To be clear, I have no sex crimes, this did not involve any other person other than myself and I have moved forward since 2009 while having complied with all aspects of the law.
I wish to remain focused on my music and my absolute dedication to the art of Black Metal. Despite any personal views and judgements the followers and supporters of our music may have, I am a somewhat private person and have never cared for destructive sensationalism and keeping what I feel is private, private.
I hope my level of transparency is understood and I thank you, as always for having been so supportive of Inquisition.
With much respect to you,
Dagon
Season of Mist shared the following brief statement on its Facebook page:
It was a cryptic message, to be sure, but according to MetalSucks, the label made the announcement mere hours after it was reached out for comment about the aforementioned child porn charges.
In 2009, Weirbach reportedly pleaded guilty to child pornography charges in Washington. The charges are on public record, as demonstrated through official documents from the Superior Court of Washington for Snohomish County.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reportedly found an account uploading sexually explicit photographs of "young females in their early teens or pre-teens" to Photobucket in November of 2006. The account was allegedly traced back to Weirbach, who reportedly said he had been posing as a woman online to obtain the images.
There are a great deal of other extremely disturbing details in the MetalSucks report. Taking our content warning into account, you can read the piece here.
Prior to news of the child porn charges, Weirbach had been criticized for his alleged links to the neo-Nazi movement. Outside of Inquisition, he plays in a Nazi-themed band called 88MM who appeared on a compilation called Declaration of Anti-Semetic Terror [sic].
Weirbach has responded to the MetalSucks article with the following statement:
To all fans, supporters and close ones, I would like to clarify some horrific misinformation generated by the webzine Metalsucks of a personal matter of mine in 2007: First you must take into account, everything Metalsucks published is taken from court documents that state charges and accusations rather than what was proven or admitted in 2007. Second, I never plead guilty to the charges and the original charges were dropped after the courts examined all evidence. I am not a sex offender, and I was absolutely innocent of all charges. The plea bargain was something the prosecutor insisted on and for the defense was the best option to end a lengthy legal process. Also, the background check webpage circulating is not entirely correct, it is definitely not showing what the Police background check would show you.
With my fullest respect to you, please read my statement Metalsucks had told me they would publish:
I made a very unwise choice of actions in 2007 which got me into some legal problems. After the investigation was conducted, a year and a half later after the initial charges, the original charges brought against me were dropped and a plea deal was presented to me. The investigation determined I did not have anything that fell under the original charge.
The police report suggested I had deleted and obstructed evidence which I deny to have done, however the obstruction charge was still part of the plea deal as was the other charge mentioned in this article. That second charge is related to viewing pornography in a public area, and again was taken as part of the plea deal. To be clear, I have no sex crimes, this did not involve any other person other than myself and I have moved forward since 2009 while having complied with all aspects of the law.
I wish to remain focused on my music and my absolute dedication to the art of Black Metal. Despite any personal views and judgements the followers and supporters of our music may have, I am a somewhat private person and have never cared for destructive sensationalism and keeping what I feel is private, private.
I hope my level of transparency is understood and I thank you, as always for having been so supportive of Inquisition.
With much respect to you,
Dagon