Last week, Otep dropped off a tour that would have the band Terror Universal opening, because she alleged that Terror Universal frontman Chad Armstrong grabbed her crotch.
Up until this point, frontman Chad Armstrong had yet to publicly comment on the allegations but today he took to Facebook to offer his side:
PLEASE READ THIS POST FROM OUR SINGER CHAD, SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT, FROM OTEP’S FALSE ALLEGATIONS!
I’m Chad Armstrong, singer from Terror Universal. Let me start by saying that I am here to set the record straight, once and for all, state the facts, and my side of the story.
These are facts; Otep has ZERO proof of these allegations, and accusations. There is NO police report. There’s NO video. She waited 30 days to announce her allegations on social media.
This is exactly how the incident happened. I was walking out of the club to go back to the hotel, as Otep was doing her meet and greet. She was standing on a table, and as walked by I tapped her on the leg, and said “good night Otep”.. That’s when she freaked out, yelling and screaming at me, and yelled at 2 security guards to “escort” me out. The security guards were just as confused as I was, we discussed what had just happened for a bit and I left.
Now let me ask you this; she claims I barreled through her hundreds of fans, and assaulted her? And the utterly false accusations about the two fingers, how does someone do that when a person is wearing pants? She claims I grabbed all of her band member’s genitals, to further distort the truth, which is absolutely false, and disgusting to even say….
Otep has a very strong social media presence, via Facebook, Twitter & Tumblr, instagram, etc… She knows her fan base, and she knew that by using keywords like “molester” and “rapist” she would incite a maniacal frenzy within her fan base, that would be directed towards me. How could I even try to defend myself in a social media war with Otep and her fans? Otep is a seasoned veteran at this sort of thing, and she has about half a million followers on facebook, intagram, twitter, etc…
I’ve received multiple threats of bodily harm and even death by Otep’s supporters. All of which were based on hearsay. Is this justice? No, this is more like a witch trial.
I have been subject to defamation of character and slander in the worst way. These are very serious accusations that I do not appreciate, and would never want my son or daughter to have to read on the internet one day. All I want to do is clear my name and go about my business. Thanks to all my friends & family throughout these terrible allegations.
Sincerely,
Chad Armstrong
It's obviously not easy to pick a side here, and really it's not up to us to do so. If anything, Armstrong may have waited too long to offer his side of the story to the point where the public may have moved on from the story and taken Otep's account as fact. Only time will tell.
