The bass player in Chase Matthew's band, Carsen Richards, has been arrested in America on child sex crimes.
Matthew and his band were performing at festival in Kentucky, BBQ & Barrels in Owensboro, last weekend when the arrest occurred on Saturday night (local time).
The charges – reported by LEX18 – relate to the alleged sexual assault of an autistic child in Clark County, Kentucky, court documents reveal, back in 2020 and 2022 (when the child was aged 12 and 14).
The victim's mother first reported the abuse to Winchester Police (Kentucky) in November 2025, her son confirming the abuse in a police interview a month later.
According to court documents seen by the Owensboro Times, the boy's mother confronted Richards at his Tennessee home in February. "There is nothing more I have regretted in my life," he reportedly told her before saying: "I made an awful mistake."
Richards, a Tennessee native, was arrested following the band's performance, having been identified by local police during the performance. The arrest occurred as Richards exited the stage and before he could reach the tour bus.
Richards faces two counts of second-degree sodomy and two counts of incest involving a person under 18 by a person three or more years older. He has since removed his Instagram page from the platform.
Chase, who only toured Australia last month, fired Carsen from the band immediately, before sharing a post to his socials.
Carsen Richards (left) and Chase Matthew at The Triffid (Brisbane) on 12 April, 2026 - image © KealiJoan Studios
"The situation has honestly been one of the most shocking and heartbreaking things I have ever experienced," the 'County Line' and 'Love You Again' singer-songwriter posted.
"When I first heard the allegations, I was sick to my stomach. I would never associate myself with a person I think could even be remotely capable of something like this, much less hire them to be on my team.
"The reality is, you don't always know what someone may be doing outside of your workplace, and nothing would have made me believe this was a possibility.
"As of his arrest this past weekend, this individual was immediately removed from the band and is no longer associated with me or my team in any capacity.
"And I want to be very clear: I do not support or tolerate behaviour of this kind whatsoever. "I am truly disturbed and disgusted by the details of these allegations. My heart breaks for anyone affected.
"Like you, I'm learning this information as it comes out publicly. I don't know anything more than y'all know.
"This is an ongoing legal matter, and I trust that the legal system will go through the correct procedures to get to the bottom of this."
Last month, Matthew released 'Smoke I've Know', a collab with Australian country artist James Johnston.
