YouTube personality and the creator of a popular webcomic series Chris Chan has been arrested on an incest charge involving his elderly mother after admitting to the sickening crime in a leaked phone call.
Chan, a 39-year-old transgender vlogger and “artist” who goes by the name Christine Weston Chandler, was booked into the Henrico County Jail in Virginia on Sunday on a felony count of incest, which is punishable by up to 12 years in prison.
Chan was transferred on Monday to Greene County, where the sheriff’s office issued a statement confirming his arrest.
According to a press release from county law enforcement, a warrant was issued for Chandler’s arrest after investigators ‘received information involving sex crimes against a family member, who resides in the Ruckersville area.’
Chandler has lived with his 79-year-old mother, Barbara, in Ruckersville, Virginia, for many years.
Chandler is currently being held without bond at the Central Virginia Regional Jail. The sheriff’s office said additional charges were pending, reported Newsweek.
Chandler is best known for creating the comic series characters Sonichu, which is a cross between Pikachu and Sonic the Hedgehog, and its love interest, Rosechu. Chan’s YouTube channel has more than 50,000 subscribers.
Chandler’s arrest came just days after a phone call was leaked on an instant messaging platform, on which a person believed to be Chandler admitting to having sex with their elderly mother, who is believed to have dementia.
The authenticity of the audio recording hasn’t been confirmed.
During the eight-minute conversation, Chandler apparently tells a friend that it was their mother, Barbara, who had ‘made the first move,’ leading to two to share a kiss, according to the audio file, which Newsweek reported.
Chandler allegedly claimed he approached the situation with ‘care and caution’ after years of harboring sexual feelings toward his mother, and even having dreams of having sex with her.
‘She was partially confused at one point, but then she came around, obviously,’ Chandler is allegedly heard saying on the call.
As they delve further into the alleged sick relationship, the person said to be Chandler says that he and his mother now have a ‘routine’ where they have sex ‘every third night’, and that his mother enjoys it.
Toward the end of the recording, Chandler apparently tells his friend: ‘God… said this was okay.’
Chandler has featured his mother on his social media pages several times over the years, most recently on July 11, sharing photos of Barbara sporting a new haircut.
‘Barbie Chan got a styling haircut. I did that; first time cutting anyone’s hair. It looks really good,’ Chan wrote.
In May, Chandler shared a series of photos of his mother as a younger woman, writing in a caption: ‘Hi, Mom. Remember, everyone, regardless of situation, your Mom, Mother, or Motherly Figure had a life and past of her own back in the day before you came along. She has gone through a lot for not only you and yours but herself as well.’
Chandler’s final public post came on July 30, in a tweet saying: ‘There is drama in the air today. Each and every one of you all are encouraged to withdraw from any and all dramas, gossip, rumors, and whatever else will, and already has, approached your way today.’
The following day, 39-year-old Chan was filmed by podcaster Ethan Ralph getting arrested by police at the Regency Inn in Richmond, Virginia.
‘I am compliant, I am good like this,’ a handcuffed Chandler is heard saying in the video, before adding that ‘everything is going to work out.’
This is not Chandler’s first run-in with the law. In October 2011, Chandler and his mother were arrested after Barbara hit a manager of a game center with her car, reported Insider.
In 2014, Chandler was arrested for pepper-spraying a worker at a GameStop store.
