The lead singer of the Grammy Award-winning indie rock band Cage The Elephant has pleaded guilty to gun possession charges after being arrested at a posh New York hotel.
Matt Shultz, 39, pleaded guilty in Manhattan Supreme Court on Friday.
He was arrested in January after police found two loaded handguns in his room at the $1,000-a-night Bowery Hotel. Schultz appeared drunk and was unable to explain to police why he was armed.
The musician’s wife, singer and actress Eva Ross, was photographed arriving and leaving court with Shultz, who was wearing a suit and tie.
The clean outfit looked quite different from the one he wore when he was seen being escorted out of the city’s 9th district after his arrest.
Indie rock singer Matt Shultz pleaded guilty to gun charges in New York on Friday
The 39-year-old appeared in New York court with his wife, singer and actress Eva Ross.
The couple was photographed arriving and leaving the Manhattan Supreme Court together.
Shultz is seen hugging an unidentified woman outside the New York courthouse.
Then, he was wearing a black puffer jacket with the hood up and was handcuffed behind his back.
Schultz was charged after a Bowery Hotel employee saw him carrying a gun in a ground-floor public restroom while he was a guest.
Police officers responded a day later, knocking on his bedroom door, and Schultz reportedly came out into the hallway and admitted he had two .45-caliber handguns.
Asked if he still had the weapons, the rocker, who police say appeared inebriated, said he didn’t know, prompting his arrest.
A judge granted a search warrant allowing police to enter the room, where they discovered two loaded guns, a Sig Sauer and a Smith & Wesson.
Police also found 11 Polaroid photos of the weapons, including some showing “a hand holding and aiming the firearm.”
A hotel employee saw Shultz carrying a handgun in a public restroom on the ground floor Wednesday night. He is pictured in custody in January.
Shultz is the lead singer of the Grammy Award-winning rock band Cage The Elephant.
Shultz is a musician, songwriter and guitarist for the band that won a Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2016 for ‘Tell Me I’m Pretty’ and in 2019 for ‘Social Cues.’
Six handwritten notes were also reportedly found, with one reading: “I will protect myself if attacked.”
He did not have a firearms license and was charged with felony criminal possession of a firearm.
The day after his arrest, Schultz was taken to Bellevue Hospital for medication, then returned to the police station a few hours later.
He was later released on $10,000 bail.
His attorney claimed the guns were purchased legally but were not licensed in New York.
Gun owners are not allowed to openly carry a gun anywhere in New York State, and New York City has its own regulations, separate from those of the state.
The city does not honor gun permits outside of its jurisdiction, including New York State.
A valid City firearms license is required to possess a weapon, and a City-issued permit is required to possess a rifle or shotgun.
Shultz, who is from Nashville, Tennessee, has no criminal record.
The rocker married Ross in 2020.
He is a musician, songwriter and guitarist for the band that won a Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2016 for ‘Tell Me I’m Pretty’ and in 2019 for ‘Social Cues’.
Cage the Elephant is known for its psychedelic sound.
Before forming the band, Schultz worked as a plumber and at a sandwich bar.
Cage the Elephant is scheduled to perform in Toronto on August 2 and in Quebec on August 4.