Former Last Comic Standing winner Jon Reep has been arrested on multiple child sexual exploitation charges.
Reep, 53, was arrested on Friday in Hickory, North Carolina, the Hickory Police Department announced.
According to police, the comedian was arrested in response to an online tip they received back in April of this year.
The Daily Mail has contacted Reep and his representative for comment, but has not yet received a response.
Reep was arrested three days after he was indicted on September 2 by the Catawba County District Attorney’s Office on nine counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and a single count of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, according to TMZ.
The charges from the grand jury were reportedly all related to child sexual abuse materials.
Former Last Comic Standing winner Jon Reep has been arrested on multiple child sexual exploitation charges. Reep, 53, was arrested on Friday at his home in Hickory, North Carolina, the Hickory Police Department announced; pictured in 2007 on Last Comic Standing
Reep, who is pictured in his mug shot from Friday, had his bond set at $260K. He was indicted on September 2 on nine counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, according to TMZ
According to police, the investigation into Reep was launched after a referral from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), which received an Internet Crimes Against Children cyber tip in April.
The tip reportedly pointed authorities toward an online account that belonged to the stand-up star.
An incident report filled out by police in April, after the tip was received, listed alleged ‘Obscene Material/Pornography — Exploit Children’ in relation to the online account.
Police said Officers were able to obtain a warrant to search the location that the account’s IP address was linked to, and electronic devices at the location were seized as part of the search.
Reep was reportedly arrested at his home just after noon on Friday, and he is currently being held at the Catawba County Detention Facility.
A judge set the television actor’s bail at $260,000, and he is scheduled for an initial court appearance on Monday, September 8, according to WCNC Charlotte.
Since his arrest, Reep’s personal website detailing his touring schedule appears to have gone dark, though the website for his podcast Carolina Reeper is still accessible as of Friday evening.
The comedian was previously scheduled for a comedy show on Friday night at the Paramount Theatre in Goldsboro, North Carolina.
Police began investigating Reep in response to a referral from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), which received an Internet Crimes Against Children cyber tip in April; pictured in 2007 on Last Comic Standing
The tip reportedly pointed authorities toward an online account that belonged to the stand-up star. The charges from the grand jury were reportedly all related to child sexual abuse materials; pictured in 2017 in Nashville, Tenn.
An incident report filled out by police in April, after the tip was received, listed alleged ‘Obscene Material/Pornography — Exploit Children’ in relation to the online account mentioned in the tip; pictured in 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada
Reep is best known for winning season five of Last Comic Standing in 2007, but he also appeared on the sitcom Rodney in a recurring role and had guest parts on Larry David’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, Eastbound & Down and the Disney Channel show Good Luck Charlie; seen in 2016 in Pasadena, Calif.
Reep was scheduled to perform Friday night at the Paramount Theatre in Goldsboro, North Carolina, but the show was canceled after his arrest; pictured in 2010 in Charlotte, North Carolina
In a statement to TMZ, the Paramount Theatre said, ‘We did not book Jon Reep, our theatre was rented by a third-party producer who has booked other comedians and musical acts with us.
‘We have just learned of Mr. Reep’s situation, and we immediately contacted the producer for clarification,’ they continued. ‘We are forced to cancel tonight’s performance and together we will determine if there is to be a rescheduled date. Existing ticket holders will be given the opportunity to retain their tickets for a possible future date, or they will be issued a refund.’
Reep is best known for winning the fifth season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing in 2007.
However, he was already a known quantity prior to that success, as he had played the recurring character of a police officer on the ABC sitcom Rodney, which starred the comedian and country singer Rodney Carrington, from 2004 to 2006.
Reep also had a small part in Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay (2008), as well as a guest appearance in 2010 on the Disney Channel series Good Luck Charlie.
Reep appeared on Danny McBride’s dark HBO comedy Eastbound & Down for four episodes in 2013, and he subsequently had single-episode appearances on Black-ish (2015), Jane The Virgin (2017) and — in a voice role — on American Dad (2020).
Reep’s most recent acting credit was on an episode of Larry David’s HBO series Curb Your Enthusiasm from 2024.
