‘American Idol’ Winner Laine Hardy Arrested For Spying on Female LSU Student
ABC/Craig Sjodin Reading Time: 3 minutes
American Idol winner Laine Hardy was arrested Friday on one count of interception of oral communication in the state of Louisiana. He has since posted a $5,000 bond for his release. The outcome of the case is pending.
Hardy has been the focus of an ongoing investigation by the Louisiana State University (LSU) police department since Friday, April 29. A day prior, Hardy received a warrant due to allegations made against him. The singer turned himself in to the LSU Police Department on the day the warrant was issued.
Laine Hardy Accused of ‘Spying’ on Female LSU Student
Local reports state that Hardy is accused of “spying” on a female student. Hardy allegedly planted a listening device in a female student’s residence at Louisiana State University. Reportedly, the listening device was used “to monitor her conversations.” A spokesperson for the university provided confirmation of an ongoing investigation, but has yet to confirm the nature of the warrant.
On April 29, Hardy took to Instagram to acknowledge that he is cooperating with the ongoing police activity:
“I understand that my career has thrust me into the public spotlight, and I embrace that wholeheartedly as my entire world belongs to my music and my fans,” Hardy wrote. “However, due to the sensitive nature of this allegation, I humbly ask for privacy at this time. I have the utmost respect for the law and will assist in their investigation as needed moving forward.”
The 21 year old singer has not released any more information about the investigation at this time. On the same day Hardy dropped out of his performance at the Mississippi Mudbug Festival. It now appears that he will not be apart of May 2’s American Idol episode, “The Great Idol Reunion.”
Update: More Details Surface in Laine Hardy Accusations
Police state that the LSU student reported Hardy after she and her roommate found what appeared to be a phone charger under her bunk on April 6. After finding the device, she quickly determined that it is a voice-activated recorder. The LSU student remains anonymous in the court documents. Documents state that she dated the singer for four months, between November 2021 and February 2022.
Prior to finding the recording device the student determined that Hardy was spying on her. He was able to recall details of her Christmas break that the student kept private. During this time the student found a fake Instagram account linked to the singer. She believes that he was using to cover up his illegal surveillance. When confronted, Hardy explained that he left a “bug” in her room that he had “since thrown in the pond.”
While investigating the recorder, police allegedly heard Hardy’s voice. They also heard repeated mentions of the name “Laine” on one file. Other recordings allegedly capture the woman having candid conversations with her roomates, following Hardy’s departure from the room.
Police state that recordings found of Hardy talking to another male lead them to believe the singer took the recorder out of the room at one point. The following recording allegedly captured the woman talking to her mother about breaking up with the singer.
One of the last recordings on the device feature the woman saying that she doesn’t know if the “bug is still in her room.”
In the state of Louisiana, at least one person as part of a conversation must provide consent for a recording to be legal. People convicted of illegally intercepting someone else’s communications can face between two and ten years in prison, as well as a maximum fine of $10,000.
