AC/DC drummer let off the hook on murder-plot charge

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AC/DC drummer let off the hook on murder-plot charge, says lawyer

Lack of evidence that Phil Rudd allegedly planned two murders by hiring hitman, but drug and threat to kill charges remain

PUBLISHED : Friday, 07 November, 2014, 10:54am
UPDATED : Friday, 07 November, 2014, 2:58pm

Agence France-Presse in Wellington



Phil Rudd attends a hearing in court in Tauranga, New Zealand. Photo: AFP

A charge alleging that AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd was involved in a murder plot was dropped after New Zealand authorities found there was insufficient evidence, his lawyer said.

“The charge alleging an attempt to procure murder should never have been laid,” barrister Paul Mabey said in a statement on Friday.

He said police did not consult prosecution lawyers before charging Rudd with “attempting to procure murder” following a raid at his luxury North Island mansion the day before.

“The Crown Solicitor’s [prosecutor’s] opinion was not sought. The charge is now withdrawn,” Mabey said.

A spokeswoman for Crown Solicitor Greg Hollister-Jones confirmed to The Associated Press on Friday that the charge had been dropped due to issues with the sufficiency of the evidence against Rudd.

Mabey said the case had attracted sensational worldwide publicity and Rudd, 60, had suffered “incalculable damage” and would consider “any possible remedies he may have”.

“Questions arise as to the degree of care taken by those responsible for arresting and charging him,” the lawyer said, pointing out the case had fallen apart less than a day after Rudd first appeared in court.

Rudd still faces a charge of threatening to kill, which Mabey said he would defend, as well as cannabis and methamphetamine possession charges.

No comment was immediately available from the New Zealand police.

In court documents tendered on Thursday, police had accused Rudd of trying to hire a hitman to kill two men in late September.

The veteran rocker appeared in court on Thursday shoeless and wearing a baggy grey jumper, his lawyer unsuccessfully arguing that media should not be allowed to take images of him because they just wanted to capture his client "at his worst".



Guitarist Angus Young (centre) performs with his bandmates Malcom Young and drummer Phil Rudd (right) in 2009. Photo: EPA

He was not required to enter a plea during his brief appearance, and was granted bail and ordered to reappear on November 27.

Under New Zealand law, attempting “to procure any person to murder any other person” is punishable by up to 10 years in jail, while threatening to kill can attract a seven-year sentence.

Australian-born Rudd joined the band in 1975 and left in 1983 after arguing with Young.

He moved to New Zealand, settling in the coastal community of Tauranga, some 150 kilometres southeast of Auckland.

He remained in the area even after patching up his differences with the band in 1994, using it as his base as he followed a punishing global touring schedule with the notoriously hard-living heavy metal pioneers.

Rudd was part of the AC/DC line-up inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 2003 and won a Grammy for best hard rock performance with the band for War Machine in 2010.

Later that year he was convicted of cannabis possession after police raided his boat, receiving a fine of NZ$250 (HK$1,500).

AC/DC are one of the best selling bands of all time, amassing sales estimated at 200 million albums worldwide featuring songs that remain classic rock radio staples, including Back in Black, Jailbreak and High Voltage.

Rudd, who released a solo album Head Job in August, has said Malcolm Young's illness would not spell the end for the band.

The band have since announced a new album, Rock or Bust, will shortly be released and they were due to undertake a world tour in 2015.





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