Michigan-based Elvis impersonator makes first Erie court appearance on child sex charges
The criminal case against a Michigan-based Elvis impersonator is proceeding in federal court in Erie, where a judge soon will decide whether to keep him in prison as he is prosecuted on charges that he made sexually explicit videos of a 16-year-old girl he was found with at a motel off Interstate 90 in Erie County in January.
The defendant, Matthew J. Chantelois, made his initial appearance Thursday in U.S. District Court in Erie. He is accused of charges related to interstate sexual exploitation of a minor, according to his indictment, returned on Feb. 13 and unsealed Feb. 23.
Chantelois, 45, of Dearborn Heights, near Detroit, was arrested in Michigan following his indictment, and since then he has been waiting in prison to be moved to the Erie area. He appeared for the initial appearance via video conference from the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center in Youngstown.
Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Richard A. Lanzillo reviewed the charges with Chantelois and his lawyer, Stephen Sebald, of Erie. Lanzillo scheduled Chantelois' arraignment and a possible detention hearing for March 21 at the federal courthouse in Erie. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian Trabold is asking that Chantelois remain detained in prison.
Chantelois said little at the brief hearing, as is usually the case with defendants at initial appearances. He responded, "Yes, sir," when Lanzillo asked him if he understood the charges and his rights.
Chantelois' stage name is Matt King, after the king of rock and roll, the famous appellation for Elvis Presley. Chantelois showed up at the initial appearance in an orange prison jumpsuit.
As an Elvis impersonator, Chantelois has traveled the United States and Mexico and performed on ocean cruises for more than 32 years, according to his website and a 2017 article in the Detroit Free Press. Court records do not indicate whether he was traveling for a performance when he was charged with the sex crimes.
What is Chantelois accused of ?
The federal charges against Chantelois are related to his arrest in Summit Township on Jan. 24, when Pennsylvania State Police said they found him around 4 a.m. with a naked 16-year-old girl in a room at the Motel 6 on Schultz Road. The motel is off the Route 97 exit for I- 90.
State police said troopers started looking for the girl, from Schroon Lake, New York, in the Adirondacks, after state police in New York reported on Jan. 24 that she was a runaway and was believed to be with Chantelois. Police "pinged" Chantelois' cellphone to track him.
The girl told Pennsylvania state police she had sex with Chantelois in the motel room, had been drinking vodka he provided and had sent him nude photos of herself, according to arrest records. Police said Chantelois met the girl via social media months earlier.
State police charged Chantelois with corruption of minors, interference with the custody of a child and furnishing alcohol to a minor. The FBI then got involved, leading to the federal charges. The state charges were withdrawn March 8, according to court records.
Chantelois is charged with three federal felony counts that concern sexually explicit images of a minor. The indictment charges him with one one count each of enticing a minor to make sexually explicit videos, using a computer or other electronic device to transport images of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and possession of images of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
What kind of sentence is Chantelois facing if he is convicted?
The count related to the videos carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison if Chantelois is convicted, Trabold, the prosecutor, said at Chantelois' initial appearance.
The count related to transportation of the images carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years. The third count carries a sentence of up to 10 years.
Lanzillo, the magistrate judge, asked Chantelois if he understood the potential penalties. Chantelois said he did.
Contact Ed Palattella at epalattella@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNpalattella.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Elvis impersonator makes first Erie court appearance in child sex case
