Panic! at the Disco Guitarist Fired After Sexual Misconduct Allegations Surface

Panic! at the Disco guitarist Kenny Harris was fired after a fan accused him of sexual misconduct, claiming he asked her for selfies when she was underage.

On Thursday, a Twitter user named Ashley said she first contacted Harris on April 20, 2016 on Snapchat, thinking he would not respond to her. However, he did and asked her to send him more selfies. The then 16-year-old agreed. She later told him she and a friend were going to see Panic! at the Disco perform a few weeks later, and asked if he could throw her a guitar pick.

“He agreed, but only if I’d send him a ‘pic [winking emoji]’ first. Me being the dumb 16 YEAR OLD that I was at the time, asked him ‘what kind of pic,’ hoping he just wanted another selfie (not that that’s any better) but noope,” Ashley wrote. “He replies back ‘surprise me[winking emoji][kissing emoji].’ So, my dumba– 16 year old self decided to play along and i go, “‘If I send you a picture now, you’ll forget about me by the time of the concert in July!!’”

According to Ashley, Harris allegedly replied, “well, if you keep sending them, i won’t.” She said she continued to agree, but always “put it off” whenever he asked for more selfies.

“He would always ask for pics but finally got bored i guess?? I would always make up excuses for why I couldn’t send anything and they were not believable whatsoever. but they shouldn’t have had to be,” Ashley wrote. “All in all. he stopped snapping me after he realized he wasn’t gonna get what he wanted ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.”

Ashley later explained why she never came forward with the messages at the time. Since they were shared on Snapchat, they have long since expired.

“Before anyone comes at me for playing along, i had just turned 16! I was nervous to come out about this back then because i didn’t want to get him in trouble. a member of my favorite band talked to me and i didnt want him to regret it? if that makes any sense? beyond f–,” she wrote.

Ashley went on to share messages from other women who claimed to have been in contact with Harris over social media. One woman claims her then-13-year-old sister sent Harris a photo of herself with their pets, and Harris responded by asking for more photos.

After the allegations surfaced, the official Panic! at the Disco Twitter account announced Harris’ firing. “Touring musician Kenny Harris will no longer be performing with us because of a personal matter,” the statement read.

Harris joined Panic! at the Disco as a touring member in 2013 after Spencer Smith left for health reasons, notes the Daily Mail. Songwriter Brandon Urie is the group’s only official member. They start a new world tour on Oct. 6 in Sydney, Australia.

Photo Credit: Stefan Hoederath/Redferns/Getty Images