Megadeth's David Ellefson Deletes His Twitter Amid Controversy

UPDATE: On May 24, Megadeth released a statement announcing they had parted ways with Ellefson. Two days later, Ellefson revealed that he's pursuing "revenge porn" charges over the incident described below.

It appears Megadeth’s David Ellefson has deleted his Twitter account after last week giving a statement denying allegations of sexually grooming an allegedly underage girl online.

Earlier this month, several interactions seemingly made between Ellefson and a woman via video call and text, including compromising images of the musician, leaked on social media. A person on Instagram claimed to have details of those exchanges — they provided screenshots of the supposed correspondence between Ellefson and the woman in question, who was reputedly underage when the two first started communicating but over 18 when the alleged videoconference took place. Other purported exchanges between the musician and more alleged underage fans also were revealed. On May 10, Ellefson admitted his involvement in "private and personal conversations" that had been made public but maintained they were "adult interactions that were taken out of context."

The woman in question also posted online after their exchanges went public, asserting that she was a consenting adult and not underage when the video interaction took place.

Regardless, as of Thursday (May 20), those attempting to visit Ellefson's Twitter page @ellefsondavid are met with a message that the account doesn't exist. Further, his Instagram has been set to private. As of this posting, the rocker’s Facebook page is still public, although commenting has apparently been disabled, and his official website is still available at davidellefson.com.

On May 11, Megadeth said they were aware of the situation involving Ellefson and "watching developments closely. As it relates to creativity and business, we are all familiar with one another. However, there are clearly aspects of David's private life that he has kept to himself. As this situation unfolds, it is important that all voices be heard clearly and respectfully. We look forward to the truth coming to light."

Megadeth will hit the road for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic’s full stop on touring with rescheduled Metal Tour of the Year dates this summer alongside Lamb of God, Trivium and In Flames. Get tickets at metaltouroftheyear.com.