AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd made an appearance in a New Zealand courtroom Tuesday as a follow-up to his November 6 arrest on charges of attempting to procure a murder after he allegedly tried to have two men killed, possession of methamphetamine, possession of cannabis and threatening to kill.
Authorities dropped the charge of attempting to procure a murder the next day due to lack of evidence.
The New Zealand Herald reports Rudd was late for his court date, causing Justice Timothy Brewer at the High Court at Tauranga to briefly issue a warrant for his arrest until he arrived minutes later for the appearance.
Rudd entered no plea to the outstanding charges and was remanded on bail to reappear on December 2.
Various media reports suggest the drummer caused a bit of commotion leaving the court, taking a piggy-back ride on his security guard and giving the finger to the assembled media before almost backing his car into an oncoming delivery truck, whose driver was forced to brake suddenly to avoid a collision.
AC/DC experienced issues with Rudd in Vancouver earlier this year when they hit the studio to record their latest album, “Rock Or Bust”, which will be released December 2.
"It was tough to get (Rudd) there in the first place," bassist Cliff Williams told USA Today recently.
Last month, the drummer missed a video shoot in London for the single, “Play Ball”, and the album’s title track, as well as a photo shoot.
"It put us in a difficult situation," said guitarist Angus Young. "It put us in a spot where we couldn't move forward. Does the guy show up? Is he reliable to do his job in good shape? We've always been a solid, reliable unit."
Rudd’s status for a 2015 world tour remains in question.
The day Rudd’s situation made headlines around the world, AC/DC released a statement, saying, “We've only become aware of Phil's arrest as the news was breaking. We have no further comment. Phil’s absence will not affect the release of our new album Rock or Bust and upcoming tour next year.”
See also:
AC/DC to launch SiriusXM channel
AC/DC stream new album Rock Or Bust ahead of release
AC/DC premiere Rock Or Bust video
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Search AC/DC at hennemusic
