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Members of Polish death metal band held on rape suspicion


Spokane - Four members of a Polish death metal band have been arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a woman on their tour bus after a 31 August concert in Spokane, Washington.

The four members of the band Decapitated sexually assaulted the woman in the bathroom of the bus while it was in downtown Spokane and then left to travel to another show, court documents said.

They were arrested on Saturday in Santa Ana, California and are jailed there while awaiting extradition to Spokane.

Steve Graham, a lawyer for the band members, said in an e-mail that "Decapitated plan to fully fight the allegations that have been brought against them and are confident that their side of the story will be heard."

Decapitated had been touring with the Australian band Thy Art is Murder, and performed several shows after the Spokane concert before being arrested.

Arrested on charges of first degree kidnapping were band members Michal Lysejko, 31; Waclaw Kieltyka, 35; Rafal Piotrowski, 31; and Hubert Wiecek, 30.

The alleged victim and her friend told Spokane police they attended the 31 August show, ended up speaking with members of Decapitated and were invited to have drinks in the tour bus, court documents said.

Once on the bus, the women reported they began to feel uncomfortable, court documents said.

One of the women went to use the bus' bathroom and was followed inside by a band member, court documents said.

The woman tried to push him away, "but he grabbed her arm and spun her around to where she was facing the sink and mirror in the bathroom," court documents said.

"She saw in the mirror and out of the corner of her eye each of the band members taking turns raping her," court documents said.

The woman's friend told police she watched the band members rape the victim, court documents said.

The alleged victim told police that a band member helped her get dressed and carried her out of the bus, court documents said.

The woman walked away from the tour bus and called 911, court documents said. A police officer who picked her up and returned to the concert venue, but the tour bus was gone, court documents said.

The woman was examined at a hospital where she was found to have upper arm bruises consistent with being restrained and other injuries, the documents said.

Band members were interviewed last Thursday by Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office detectives.

Lysejko told officers he did not know the women when shown a picture.

Kieltyka told officers he saw two members of the band engage in sex acts with the woman in the bus bathroom, court documents said.

Piotrowski said the women were at a party on the bus but declined additional comment, court documents said.

Wiecek said the two women had been on the bus but he did not see what was going on, court documents said.

Graham, the band's attorney, told The Spokesman-Review newspaper, that the band members would not fight extradition.

"We have witnesses that can testify to the fact that the accuser came to visit the band of her own free will and left on good terms," Graham told the newspaper.


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