Port Colborne entertainer faces child porn charges
Performer’s gigs include church organist and Santa Claus
A 35-year-old Port Colborne man known for his singing comedy shows and playing Santa Claus made a brief court appearance Thursday morning following his arrest on child pornography charges.
Joe Crawford appeared for a bail hearing via audio in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines.
Information revealed during the hearing cannot be published due to a publication ban.
Crawford was released from custody on $2,500 bail, no deposit, and must abide by several conditions, including that he not be in the presence of anyone under 16 and that he not access the internet.
Crawford is scheduled to answer to the charges in Welland court July 29.
As a result of an investigation that started last September, he is charged with four counts of possession of child pornography and three counts each of accessing child pornography and make available child pornography. He was arrested Wednesday.
Crawford has been a well-known entertainer in the region for a number of years.
Last December he performed a series of concerts called Joe Crawford Presents: A Blue Christmas, a fundraiser for The Hope Centre and Salvation Army in Welland.
He has an online talk show and has served as Tugboat Santa during
Port Colborne’s Santa
Claus Parade.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, while a student at Lakeshore Catholic High School, Crawford often went into character as Waf- flez the Clown.
He ran in the 2018 provincial election as a candidate for the None of the Above party in the Niagara Centre riding.
Crawford is the organist at Trinity Lutheran Church in Fort Erie.
Pastor Julio Romero would not say how long Crawford had held this position, but said his arrest is saddening to learn about.
“As you can imagine, this is terrible news for us and the rest of the community,” he said. “Joe was involved in so many things — not only in his hometown — but all over the Niagara region.”
He said it is a “difficult time” for the church.