‘NOT AN ACCIDENTAL TOUCHING’

Oscar Nominee, 81, Pleads Guilty to Sex Crime

The actor was accused of groping women at a horror movie convention in 2022.

Gary Busey, 81, pleaded guilty to one count of criminal sexual contact. During his hearing on Thursday, the Oscar nominee admitted that he intentionally touched a woman inappropriately at the Monster-Mania Convention, an annual horror movie convention at the Doubletree Hotel in Camden, New Jersey, on Aug. 13, 2022. “It was not an accidental touching,” Busey told the judge. At least three women allege that Busey groped them during a photo op, with one claiming he put his face near her breasts and asked “where she got them” before trying to undo her bra. When he was first arrested, Busey denied the allegations. Criminal affidavits obtained by The Philadelphia Inquirer allege Busey asked the police officers to apologize to the women on his behalf and to ask them not to press charges. Busey entered a plea deal and faces one to five years of probation as well as fines. The 81-year-old attended court virtually and had difficulty hearing the proceedings, even with his hearing aids on, CourtTV reports. In the past three years, the octogenarian has been accused of other offensive crimes as well, including a hit-and-run at a shopping center and publicly masturbating.