HAMPSTEAD — A Massachusetts musician faces eight charges — five of them felonies — of online pornography and sexual assault of an underage Hampstead girl.
Jason Prusak, bass guitarist with the metal thrash band Hell Within, made an appearance in handcuffs and an orange prisoner's uniform in Exeter District Court yesterday.
Prusak, 27, of East Bridgewater, Mass., is accused of having sex with a Hampstead teenager.
"I don't want to say anything without a lawyer," he told Judge R. Laurence Cullen, when asked if he wanted to object to high bail.
Prusak is being held in the Rockingham County jail on $150,000 bail. He was ordered to stay away from the teenager and her family and ordered not to contact them by mail or telephone. Cullen also set other bail conditions, but told Prusak the bail could be reduced later.
Prusak poses a threat to the teenager, her family and to the community, police said. He has a criminal record and was convicted of passing bad checks and counterfeiting in Brockton, Mass. Other similar charges date back to 2001.
Prusak sat in the prisoners bay and covered his face with his hands moments before the arraignment. He mouthed words to family members, who were in court and telling Prusak not to worry. The family had asked to be heard on the bail, but Cullen did not invite them to speak. The woman, who later refused to identify herself, wept when Prusak was led into the courtroom.
Prusak was formally charged with felonious sexual assault for allegedly having intercourse with the teenager. He also faces five felony computer pornography charges for allegedly sending the teenager a link to a Web site with a picture of her naked. Additionally, Prusak faces two counts of misdemeanor sexual assault for allegedly touching the teenager and putting her hand on him.
Police said the felonious sexual assault happened on Aug. 20. Prusak is accused of using a computer to send pornography to the girl five times between Aug. 25 and Aug. 27.
No plea could be entered because five of the charges are felonies.
Police have declined to state the teenager's age. According to court papers, she is between 13 and 16 years old.
"She is well under the age of consent," Hampstead police Sgt. Ken Owen said.
Prusak and the teenager met over the Internet, Owen said. Police are releasing few other details about the investigation, which began when the girl's parents contacted police with information about her computer.
Prusak is known on the band's MySpace page as Froggy. His own MySpace profile is private, but he is depicted on his site as "The Amphibious Maximus, aka Jason!"
Hell Within started in Lowell, Mass., in 2002. The band completed its "Summer of Corruption 2008" U.S. tour in July, according to its MySpace page.
