Lead singer of Barenaked Ladies arrested for cocaine possession
Steven J. Page, the lead singer for the popular, whimsical Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies, has been charged with possessing cocaine after police allegedly caught him and a woman with the drug early Friday in a Syracuse-area apartment.
Page, 38, of Toronto was visiting a female acquaintance in the village of Fayetteville when he was arrested by Manlius Town Police, according to authorities there.
His arrest comes at a time when the band, known for its clean image and cross-generational following, is marketing itself to kids with its new album, “Snacktime,” in which it performs two dozen original children’s songs. It has frequently appeared in the Buffalo area and has a concert scheduled in September in Niagara Falls.
Page faces a Class C felony charge of criminal possession of a controlled substance. The charge can carry up to a 15-year prison sentence.
Manlius Town Police arrested Page and Stephanie M. Ford, 25, of Fayetteville shortly after 2 a. m. Friday. Officers on patrol on East Genesee Street in the village found a vehicle parked across a sidewalk in a driveway with its driver’s door open and no one nearby, according to Manlius Police Capt. Bill Bleyle.
“It just raised the suspicions of the officers,” Bleyle said. “The owner of the car was not there.”
They approached the residence to investigate, he said, and through the window of a door saw a man and a woman sitting at the kitchen table with a white capsule in front of them.
Police said Ford was not the woman Page went to visit. That woman, 27-year-old Christine M. Benedicto, Ford’s roommate, and Page argued earlier and Benedicto left the area in Page’s car, according to Bleyle. Benedicto’s car was the one left in the driveway with the door open, police said.
When officers questioned Page and Ford, neither was able to provide cogent explanations, according to Bleyle.
“We subsequently obtained a search warrant for the apartment as well as [Page’s] car,” Bleyle said. “We impounded the car, and we found a small amount of additional cocaine.”
A small quantity of marijuana also was found in the apartment, he said. Ford and Benedicto also are facing drug charges in the incident.
Police said they are unclear of the exact nature of the relationship between Page and Benedicto but believe he was in town to visit her. Page and Carolyn Ricketts, his wife of almost 14 years, separated last year. They have three sons.
Page and Ford were arraigned in Manlius Town Court and released on bail. Page posted $10,000 bail for himself and $5,000 for Ford, Bleyle said. Benedicto was arraigned and released on her own recognizance.
Page performed with the band Saturday at a concert in southern Indiana.
The band is scheduled to perform next month on Long Island at Playskool’s Play Aid Benefit Concert to benefit four children’s charities. It also is slated to appear on stage at the Seneca Niagara Events Center in Niagara Falls in late September.
According to a prepared statement by Terry McBride, the Vancouver-based manager for the band, Barenaked Ladies shows are still scheduled, but he offered little comment on Page’s arrest.
“We cannot comment because the matter is before the courts, but we are confident our client Steven will be completely exonerated,” McBride said. “Until that time, it’s business as usual for the Barenaked Ladies.”
Page is being represented by Buffalo attorney Mark J. Mahoney. He is expected to appear for an August hearing in Fayetteville Village Court.
Bleyle said officers didn’t become aware of Page’s celebrity until they arrested him.
“[Ford] told us during the arrest that’s who he was,” Bleyle said. “To us, it was just a regular drug arrest.”
