Man behind 'Kony 2012' arrested - for masturbating in public

Published: 17 March, 2012, 00:43

Jason Russell, co-founder of non-profit Invisible Children and director of "Kony 2012" viral video campaign. (Reuters / Brendan McDermid)

The blonde-haired, blue-eyed, Christian filmmaker behind the Internet’s most recent famous activism campaign, “Kony 2012,” has been arrested. For masturbating. And being drunk. And vandalizing cars. In public. In the morning.

Jason Russell, 33, was arrested Thursday morning by the San Diego Police Department in Southern California and the earliest reports detailing the incident suggest it was one hell of a day already for the Invisible Children co-founder and proclaimed “mastermind” behind the Kony 2012 viral video.Police say he was described as "in his underwear" when the first 911 calls were made.

San Diego Police Department Lieutenant Andrea Brown tells a local NBC affiliate that Russell was found masturbating in public, vandalizing cars and possibly under the influence of an unknown substance at around 11:30 am on Thursday. Authorities detained him at the intersection of Ingraham Street and Riviera Drive in San Diego, only a stone’s throw from the Pacific Ocean.

When the Kony 2012 campaign was released earlier this month, Russell’s activism group, Invisible Children, described him on their website as being the “grand storyteller and dreamer” behind their operation. By Friday afternoon, however, the bio page of the Invisible Children website was unavailable.

Within minutes of the news of his arrest being released on Friday, the group issued a statement. Invisible Children CEO Ben Keesey published an one-paragraph press release, but did not touch on the topic of arrest. Instead, Keesey says, “Jason Russell was unfortunately hospitalized yesterday suffering from exhaustion, dehydration and malnutrition."

"He is now receiving medical care and is focused on getting better. The past two weeks have taken a severe emotional toll on all of us, Jason especially, and that toll manifested itself in an unfortunate incident yesterday," added Russell.

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Comment by DTOM on March 16, 2012 at 6:58pm: He may have been a wanker, but I'm inclined to agree that this guy has been set up by chemical/mind control means - it does hint at damage control

Comment by suzie on March 16, 2012 at 6:55pm

Comment by suzie on March 16, 2012 at 6:52pm: U-ganda - be kidding me? roarring Rolmao ... i mean you got me in stitches here Nikki

Comment by Nikki on March 16, 2012 at 6:45pm: Uganda be kidding me! Let's hope he was still not thinking of the children, lol.

Comment by suzie on March 16, 2012 at 6:30pm: I am very suspicious of this .. he may have been a tool in the whole KONY thing which is being dismantled as we speak and there program is a complete failure and when something planned fails someone has to pay with these NWO types and one thing they do and it is effective true or not they brand you with absolute lunacy and a sexual perversion of some kind. He pissed off someone.. If it just amazingly true than WOW ..that is a lot of suffering for a reasonably healthy looking guy...

“Jason Russell was unfortunately hospitalized yesterday suffering from exhaustion, dehydration and malnutrition."

"He is now receiving medical care and is focused on getting better. The past two weeks have taken a severe emotional toll on all of us, Jason especially, and that toll manifested itself in an unfortunate incident yesterday,"

BUMMER for all eh?