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Former Kasabian frontman Tom Meighan has issued a statement after being convinceted of assault, saying he is “completely to blame and accept[s] all responsibility” for his actions.
The Leceister band announced on Monday (July 6) that Meighan would be stepping down as frontman “by mutual consent” in order to “concentrate all his energies on getting his life back on track”. Then Yesterday (July 7), the singer appeared at Leicester Magistrates Court to face a charge of assault against his partner Vikki Ager. Meighan pleaded guilty and was subsequently sentenced to 200 hours of unpaid work.
Following the hearing, Kasabian issued a second statement in which they elaborated on Meighan’s exit. “There is absolutely no way we can condone his assault conviction,” they wrote, and were therefore “left with no choice but to ask Tom to leave the band”.
Tonight (July 8), Meighan posted a statement on social media – apologising, explaining his alcohol addiction and ADHD diagnosis, as well as detailing how he has since attended rehab and remains with his partner Vikki.
“I would like to make a statement about recent events and publicly apologise to my partner Vikki, my band-mates, my friends, family and friends,” it began. “I am very sorry and deeply regret my recent behaviour. In no way am I trying to condone my actions or make excuses. I am completely to blame and accept all responsibility.”
Meighan went on to say that he had “struggled for many years with alcohol addiction”, adding that the incident in April served as “a wake-up call for me, for who I was, and what I was becoming”.
He continued: “I have also recently been diagnoses with ADHD, and although this is no way excuses my actions, it has helped me to understand more about my behavioural issues.”
I would like to make a statement following recent events. Full statement below. pic.twitter.com/GFIt6lqPjg
— Tom Meighan (@MeighanOfficial) July 8, 2020
“I was spiralling out of control. My mental health was becoming more and more unstable and I was at breaking point.”
The musician explained that he then booked into a rehabilitation programme for alcoholism as a result, saying he had never been “completely sober” before.
“This time has been different. I left the programme three weeks ago and with the support of my family and friends, I’ve been taking every day as it comes, getting through each day completely clean and sober.
“This time I actually really want to do it, not just for those I care about, but also for myself.”
In their post last night, Kasabian also addressed Meighan’s initial statement regarding his departure, in which he thanked fans for their love and support, stated that he was now “in a really good place” and would “be seeing you all very soon”.
“We were led to believe that Tom would hold his hands up in his statement and tell everyone what he’d done but he chose not to, misleading a lot of fans,” they said.
In response, Meighan said he’d been unable to acknowledge the legal proceedings at the time the first statement was issued. “I only wanted to assure everyone that I was in a good place mentally, compared to where I had been,” he said.
“I would never knowingly mislead fans and appreciate them greatly.”
Meighan added: “Vikki & I hope to be able to move on from this as a stronger couple. I hope in time you can forgive me.”
In their post last night, Kasabian said: “Ultimately, as much as Tom has hurt us all, we’re not the victim in all of this. Domestic violence is something that can never be excused.”
In his hearing, the court heard that Meighan “smelt heavily of intoxicants” during the incident on 9 April – described as a “sustained” attack. A child is said to have witnessed the attack and called 999 to say a “domestic incident was taking place”. Prosecutor Naeem Valli said police described Ms Ager as “visibly upset” while Meighan was “un-cooperative and aggressive”.
On July 6, NME published a blog relating to Tom Meighan’s departure from Kasabian. This was written before we were aware of the assault charges made against him. As soon as we were made aware, the offending article was removed from our website.
If you’ve been affected by domestic abuse you can contact Refuge’s freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247. You can also donate to Refuge here.
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