Axl Rose arrested in Sweden for biting security guard
06-27-06, 10:39 AM
#1
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Thread Starter
Axl Rose arrested in Sweden for biting security guard
Thought about putting this in one of the GN'R threads, but it's so silly, I figured it deserved a thread of it's own.
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STOCKHOLM, Sweden -
Axl Rose spent most of the day in a Stockholm jail cell after allegedly biting a security guard in the leg at his hotel, police said.
The Guns N' Roses frontman was arrested early Tuesday after attacking and threatening the guard and causing damage to the Berns Hotel, where the alleged scuffle took place, police spokeswoman Towe Hagg said.
Rose was released from jail that evening, after he admitted to the charges and agreed to pay a fine of $5,500, Hagg said.
The 44-year-old rocker was also ordered to pay $1,360 in damages to the security guard, she said.
Catarina Oscarsson, a spokeswoman for concert organizer Ema Telstar, said the band wasn't traveling with a publicist and would not comment on the arrest.
Hagg told The Associated Press that Rose was drunk during the confrontation and was not questioned by police until after he had sobered up.
"He was deemed too intoxicated to be questioned right away," she said.
It was unclear what caused the fight, but Swedish tabloids said the guard tried to intervene when Rose started arguing with a woman in the hotel lobby.
Police officer Fredrik Nylen was quoted by the daily Aftonbladet Web site as saying Rose acted aggressively toward police and had to be handcuffed and restrained in the hotel.
"He kept a high profile, so to speak," Nylen, one of the police officers who helped arrest Rose, was quoted as saying.
Guns N' Roses played a concert in Stockholm's Globe Arena on Monday night, and had been partying at a well-known nightclub before the scuffle, Aftonbladet said.
The band was scheduled to perform in Oslo, Norway, on Wednesday night.
In May, Rose and fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger capped an evening out at a new club called The Plumm in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood with midnight fisticuffs.
The scuffle reportedly started after Rose moved the drink of Hilfiger's girlfriend. According to Rose, Hilfiger, 55, smacked him in the arm and told him to put the drink back.
Rose was at the club to play a surprise set for "Rent" actress
Rosario Dawson for her 27th birthday party.
He did perform, and dedicated the song "You're Crazy" to "my good friend Tommy Hilfiger."
Axl Rose spent most of the day in a Stockholm jail cell after allegedly biting a security guard in the leg at his hotel, police said.
The Guns N' Roses frontman was arrested early Tuesday after attacking and threatening the guard and causing damage to the Berns Hotel, where the alleged scuffle took place, police spokeswoman Towe Hagg said.
Rose was released from jail that evening, after he admitted to the charges and agreed to pay a fine of $5,500, Hagg said.
The 44-year-old rocker was also ordered to pay $1,360 in damages to the security guard, she said.
Catarina Oscarsson, a spokeswoman for concert organizer Ema Telstar, said the band wasn't traveling with a publicist and would not comment on the arrest.
Hagg told The Associated Press that Rose was drunk during the confrontation and was not questioned by police until after he had sobered up.
"He was deemed too intoxicated to be questioned right away," she said.
It was unclear what caused the fight, but Swedish tabloids said the guard tried to intervene when Rose started arguing with a woman in the hotel lobby.
Police officer Fredrik Nylen was quoted by the daily Aftonbladet Web site as saying Rose acted aggressively toward police and had to be handcuffed and restrained in the hotel.
"He kept a high profile, so to speak," Nylen, one of the police officers who helped arrest Rose, was quoted as saying.
Guns N' Roses played a concert in Stockholm's Globe Arena on Monday night, and had been partying at a well-known nightclub before the scuffle, Aftonbladet said.
The band was scheduled to perform in Oslo, Norway, on Wednesday night.
In May, Rose and fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger capped an evening out at a new club called The Plumm in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood with midnight fisticuffs.
The scuffle reportedly started after Rose moved the drink of Hilfiger's girlfriend. According to Rose, Hilfiger, 55, smacked him in the arm and told him to put the drink back.
Rose was at the club to play a surprise set for "Rent" actress
Rosario Dawson for her 27th birthday party.
He did perform, and dedicated the song "You're Crazy" to "my good friend Tommy Hilfiger."
Last edited by Matt; 06-27-06 at 03:07 PM.
06-28-06, 11:47 AM
#4
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Nice to see a rock star that still wants to party. Too bad Axl can't handle his alcohol.
more from blabbermouth:
The Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet (Story#1, Story#2) has revealed more information about Tuesday's (June 27) early morning brawl at Stockholm's Berns hotel that resulted in GUNS N' ROSES frontman Axl Rose being arrested on suspicion of damaging property at the hotel, assaulting a security guard and threatening police.
According to an Aftonbladet source, a security guard at the hotel heard someone cursing and swearing loudly in English in the hotel's lobby at approximately 7:30 a.m. It was Axl Rose, who was accompanied by his bodyguard. "Axl was not pleased with the rooms at the hotel," the source said. "He had seen several and was pissed off."
The hotel security guard asked Axl Rose to calm down and said, "Can you lower your voice?" But Axl continued screaming and suddenly attacked the security guard, according to Aftonbladet.
"[Axl] pushed [the guard] in the chest hard enough to cause him to almost lost his balance," the source said. "In response, the security guard grabbed Axl's braids and pulled them to the floor. That's when Axl bit him in his thigh."
At that point, Rose got hold of a nearby vase and threw it straight into an 18th century mirror worth approximately $2,000, according to Aftonbladet. The hotel staff called the police and the security guard desperately tried to regain control of the situation.
According to the source, the security guard told Axl's bodyguard, "Now you have to help me keep this guy in check." The pissed off Rose responded with threats. "Move away if you still wanna have a job," Axl screamed at his bodyguard, according to the Aftonbladet source.
A half hour earlier, Rose had checked into the hotel's biggest suite, according to the Swedish newspaper Expressen. Fifteen minutes later, Rose and his bodyguard came down to the reception and Rose screamed, "Where is everyone? Where's the party? I was promised a big party!"
To calm Rose down, his tour manager and assistant were woken up. The hotel security was also called and that's when Axl exploded, according to Expressen.
At 7:47 the police stormed into the Berns hotel with their batons drawn. They searched Axl and handcuffed him.
According to Expressen, Axl screamed at his bodyguard as he was being led away to the police car, "You are fired. You are so fucking fired."
Axl's tour crew, Swedish lawyers and concert promotion agency worked hard all day yesterday to get Rose released from police custody. In the end, it became clear that the only way Axl could be allowed to walk away was if he confessed to all charges.
At approximately 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Axl was tranported out of the police station by lying on the floor of a van and driven to the Bromma airport in central Stockholm. At 8:00 p.m., the private jet (Photo#1, Photo#2) took off from Sweden with Axl Rose and the rest of his band and headed for Oslo, where GUNS N' ROSES are scheduled to perform tonight (June 28).
According to an Aftonbladet source, Axl was only able to bring 10 of his suitcases with him. The rest of his luggage remained in the hotel room along with an unpaid hotel bill.
A few minutes after 9:00 p.m, the plane landed in Oslo and that's when another bizarre drama started, according to Aftonbladet.
Axl refused to leave the airplane and instead started another party at the landing field. Ice cubes were delivered by car to the plane, according to Aftonbladet. After four hours, at 1:00 a.m., Axl left the plane and was taken by limo to a hotel in central Oslo.
more from blabbermouth:
The Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet (Story#1, Story#2) has revealed more information about Tuesday's (June 27) early morning brawl at Stockholm's Berns hotel that resulted in GUNS N' ROSES frontman Axl Rose being arrested on suspicion of damaging property at the hotel, assaulting a security guard and threatening police.
According to an Aftonbladet source, a security guard at the hotel heard someone cursing and swearing loudly in English in the hotel's lobby at approximately 7:30 a.m. It was Axl Rose, who was accompanied by his bodyguard. "Axl was not pleased with the rooms at the hotel," the source said. "He had seen several and was pissed off."
The hotel security guard asked Axl Rose to calm down and said, "Can you lower your voice?" But Axl continued screaming and suddenly attacked the security guard, according to Aftonbladet.
"[Axl] pushed [the guard] in the chest hard enough to cause him to almost lost his balance," the source said. "In response, the security guard grabbed Axl's braids and pulled them to the floor. That's when Axl bit him in his thigh."
At that point, Rose got hold of a nearby vase and threw it straight into an 18th century mirror worth approximately $2,000, according to Aftonbladet. The hotel staff called the police and the security guard desperately tried to regain control of the situation.
According to the source, the security guard told Axl's bodyguard, "Now you have to help me keep this guy in check." The pissed off Rose responded with threats. "Move away if you still wanna have a job," Axl screamed at his bodyguard, according to the Aftonbladet source.
A half hour earlier, Rose had checked into the hotel's biggest suite, according to the Swedish newspaper Expressen. Fifteen minutes later, Rose and his bodyguard came down to the reception and Rose screamed, "Where is everyone? Where's the party? I was promised a big party!"
To calm Rose down, his tour manager and assistant were woken up. The hotel security was also called and that's when Axl exploded, according to Expressen.
At 7:47 the police stormed into the Berns hotel with their batons drawn. They searched Axl and handcuffed him.
According to Expressen, Axl screamed at his bodyguard as he was being led away to the police car, "You are fired. You are so fucking fired."
Axl's tour crew, Swedish lawyers and concert promotion agency worked hard all day yesterday to get Rose released from police custody. In the end, it became clear that the only way Axl could be allowed to walk away was if he confessed to all charges.
At approximately 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Axl was tranported out of the police station by lying on the floor of a van and driven to the Bromma airport in central Stockholm. At 8:00 p.m., the private jet (Photo#1, Photo#2) took off from Sweden with Axl Rose and the rest of his band and headed for Oslo, where GUNS N' ROSES are scheduled to perform tonight (June 28).
According to an Aftonbladet source, Axl was only able to bring 10 of his suitcases with him. The rest of his luggage remained in the hotel room along with an unpaid hotel bill.
A few minutes after 9:00 p.m, the plane landed in Oslo and that's when another bizarre drama started, according to Aftonbladet.
Axl refused to leave the airplane and instead started another party at the landing field. Ice cubes were delivered by car to the plane, according to Aftonbladet. After four hours, at 1:00 a.m., Axl left the plane and was taken by limo to a hotel in central Oslo.
06-30-06, 10:11 AM
#6
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
More from blabbermouth.net:
The hotel security guard who was involved in a brawl with GUNS N' ROSES frontman Axl Rose the morning after the band's concert in Stockholm, Sweden has broken his silence on the incident.
Pascal Håkansson (photo#1, photo#2), 25, who was working his fourth day as a security guard at the Berns hotel when he was allegedly assaulted by Rose, spoke exclusively to the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet about the Tuesday morning (June 27) altercation.
"Axl came alone to the hotel and went up to his room," Håkansson said. "He came back again in the company of some sort of coordinator — an older woman, who was his 'mom.'"
According to Pascal, what was about to happen turned out to be the most bizarre thing he's experienced in his five years as a security guard.
"Axl was pissed off because people had left him alone at some party," Pascal said. "He was loaded, in a bad mood and started cursing at the woman. When he started banging on the walls, I approached him and asked him to lower his voice."
When Axl ignored him, the security guard approached the assistant instead.
"Then Axl turned around and pushed me in my chest and neck," Håkansson said.
How hard?
"I totally lost balance. I wasn't prepared and I had to kneel for a moment in order to be able to remain standing. Then he jumped me and started fighting. I had to fend off a few punches, on my arms, for instance. Then I got hold of his neck and got him down on the ground. We wrestled for about a minute; he was strong."
And that's when he bit you?
"Yeah, but it wasn't until afterwards that I felt it. When you get such a rush of adrenaline, you don't feel anything. He could have had Hepatitis B or something. It was very uncomfortable. In general, it's disgusting to bite people."
When you were lying there on the ground, were you able to get both his arms in a lock?
"No, it wasn't possible. He was wild. He was totally wild. He was gonna kill me. 'I'm gonna fuck your life up,' he screamed."
At the same time as Axl Rose's bodyguard came down to the lobby, the reception called the police.
"Axl was stark-raving mad," Pascal continued. "The bodyguard tried to calm him down, but Axl threatened to fire him if he intervened. That's when he threw a vase into an antique mirror."
How did Axl look?
"He had a crazy, disturbing look."
Was he intoxicated?
"Yes, he was intoxicated, by alcohol or something."
At 7:45 a.m., four policemen with their batons drawn entered Berns hotel.
"He was still bouncing up and down screaming that he was gonna make my life a living hell," Pascal said.
What happened to you when the police detained Axl and drove away to the police station?
"I was upset. I sat down and talked to the staff at the reception. One of the girls was sad after what had happened. I wrote a report. Then the police called and wanted me to go to the hospital."
What did they check you out for at the hospital?
"If my skin had broken, but it hadn't. It was mostly a superficial wound."
Did you have time to be afraid? According to you, he seemed to be totally out of control.
"I have worked a lot as a bouncer at nightclubs and have become somewhat desensitized. I didn't have time to be afraid. But afterwards, it hit me. He was totally crazy. Anything could have happened."
Why have you been laying low until now?
"You have to reflect a bit before going public."
Axl Rose has admitted the crimes and will pay you 10,000 SEK (approximately $1,400) in damages. Have you heard anything from him since this incident?
"No one has called me. Not the police, not the District Attorney, not Axl's crew. It wold be nice to get an apology."
Will you proceed with this matter?
"I'm going to contact a lawyer to see what options are available. If this would have happened in the U.S., I probably would have been a millionaire," Pascal said with a smile.
Håkansson is now off work for a week before returning to his position as the security guard at the lobby of the Berns hotel.
"This was my fourth day at Berns and people told me that nothing ever happened there," Pascal said. "And then this is how it turns out. It's just totally crazy."
Aftonbladet has tried to reach Axl Rose through the concert booking agency Ema Telstar for a comment, but with no luck.
"I hold no grudge against him," Håkansson insisted. "I just did my job and did it well. It was nothing personal against me — it could have happened to anyone. It's just by pure luck that it wasn't one of the girls working in the reception that was harmed."
The hotel security guard who was involved in a brawl with GUNS N' ROSES frontman Axl Rose the morning after the band's concert in Stockholm, Sweden has broken his silence on the incident.
Pascal Håkansson (photo#1, photo#2), 25, who was working his fourth day as a security guard at the Berns hotel when he was allegedly assaulted by Rose, spoke exclusively to the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet about the Tuesday morning (June 27) altercation.
"Axl came alone to the hotel and went up to his room," Håkansson said. "He came back again in the company of some sort of coordinator — an older woman, who was his 'mom.'"
According to Pascal, what was about to happen turned out to be the most bizarre thing he's experienced in his five years as a security guard.
"Axl was pissed off because people had left him alone at some party," Pascal said. "He was loaded, in a bad mood and started cursing at the woman. When he started banging on the walls, I approached him and asked him to lower his voice."
When Axl ignored him, the security guard approached the assistant instead.
"Then Axl turned around and pushed me in my chest and neck," Håkansson said.
How hard?
"I totally lost balance. I wasn't prepared and I had to kneel for a moment in order to be able to remain standing. Then he jumped me and started fighting. I had to fend off a few punches, on my arms, for instance. Then I got hold of his neck and got him down on the ground. We wrestled for about a minute; he was strong."
And that's when he bit you?
"Yeah, but it wasn't until afterwards that I felt it. When you get such a rush of adrenaline, you don't feel anything. He could have had Hepatitis B or something. It was very uncomfortable. In general, it's disgusting to bite people."
When you were lying there on the ground, were you able to get both his arms in a lock?
"No, it wasn't possible. He was wild. He was totally wild. He was gonna kill me. 'I'm gonna fuck your life up,' he screamed."
At the same time as Axl Rose's bodyguard came down to the lobby, the reception called the police.
"Axl was stark-raving mad," Pascal continued. "The bodyguard tried to calm him down, but Axl threatened to fire him if he intervened. That's when he threw a vase into an antique mirror."
How did Axl look?
"He had a crazy, disturbing look."
Was he intoxicated?
"Yes, he was intoxicated, by alcohol or something."
At 7:45 a.m., four policemen with their batons drawn entered Berns hotel.
"He was still bouncing up and down screaming that he was gonna make my life a living hell," Pascal said.
What happened to you when the police detained Axl and drove away to the police station?
"I was upset. I sat down and talked to the staff at the reception. One of the girls was sad after what had happened. I wrote a report. Then the police called and wanted me to go to the hospital."
What did they check you out for at the hospital?
"If my skin had broken, but it hadn't. It was mostly a superficial wound."
Did you have time to be afraid? According to you, he seemed to be totally out of control.
"I have worked a lot as a bouncer at nightclubs and have become somewhat desensitized. I didn't have time to be afraid. But afterwards, it hit me. He was totally crazy. Anything could have happened."
Why have you been laying low until now?
"You have to reflect a bit before going public."
Axl Rose has admitted the crimes and will pay you 10,000 SEK (approximately $1,400) in damages. Have you heard anything from him since this incident?
"No one has called me. Not the police, not the District Attorney, not Axl's crew. It wold be nice to get an apology."
Will you proceed with this matter?
"I'm going to contact a lawyer to see what options are available. If this would have happened in the U.S., I probably would have been a millionaire," Pascal said with a smile.
Håkansson is now off work for a week before returning to his position as the security guard at the lobby of the Berns hotel.
"This was my fourth day at Berns and people told me that nothing ever happened there," Pascal said. "And then this is how it turns out. It's just totally crazy."
Aftonbladet has tried to reach Axl Rose through the concert booking agency Ema Telstar for a comment, but with no luck.
"I hold no grudge against him," Håkansson insisted. "I just did my job and did it well. It was nothing personal against me — it could have happened to anyone. It's just by pure luck that it wasn't one of the girls working in the reception that was harmed."
06-30-06, 10:14 AM
#7
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
blabbermouth: from Axl's manager
GUNS N' ROSES manager Merck Mercuriadis released this statement following the band's sold out show in Oslo, Norway last night (June 28) — their first since frontman Axl Rose was released from jail in Stockholm on Tuesday:
"We are very unhappy about Tuesday's events in Stockholm. To put this in context, we are in the middle of a tour — with sold-out shows last night in Oslo, tomorrow in Copenhagen, and Saturday in Zurich rounding out this week alone — and continuing until the beginning of August.
"The Swedish authorities were very aware of this, yet continually threatened us over a 12-hour period with between 5 days and 3 weeks incarceration without bail if Axl did not 'cooperate.' They were fully aware that there were millions of dollars at stake, not to mention the hopes of tens of thousands of fans who had paid for tickets to see GUNS N' ROSES.
"The point is, the police report should not be taken at face value, and if one were to be explicit, this experience is tantamount to being held for ransom. If the context were any different, Axl would probably have preferred to spend the time in jail in order to ensure that all the facts were a matter of public record.
"In addition to this, we are also not happy at the treatment he received. He was arrested after being accosted by a security guard in his hotel, following which he was physically mistreated by the arresting officer in the process of which a valuable bracelet went missing not to be returned. While in custody, he was held down by 5 police officers while a doctor tried to take blood to administer a drug test 3 different times. This illustrates not only the level of incompetence, but malice involved. The results of the test were negative, but the exercise was a clear example of an authoritarian approach trying to flex its muscles. This is the same draconian approach that assumes the security guard in question is telling the truth just because he has a badge.
"Here you have a situation where authorities are skewing information their way, with the media all too ready to run with the biased reports. I did not receive a single phone call Tuesday to verify or comment on any of the reported events. There is a long history of claims by law enforcement, media and others against Axl that have not held up against scrutiny, legal or otherwise. He has had countless baseless lawsuits brought by numerous attorneys and nothing of any merit has ever held up.
"This is not a criticism of the people of Stockholm. The 15,000 people at the show Monday night were amazing, and everyone we met before and after were terrific, until the encounter with the over exuberant security guard. That is where encounters with real people stop and the authorities attempt to take over. There were a number of people involved who treated Axl well, while the conduct of some was questionable and others still deplorable. Regardless, GUNS N' ROSES will return to Sweden where they will play once again for the people, not the authorities.
"Love him or hate him, don't get it twisted."
GUNS N' ROSES manager Merck Mercuriadis released this statement following the band's sold out show in Oslo, Norway last night (June 28) — their first since frontman Axl Rose was released from jail in Stockholm on Tuesday:
"We are very unhappy about Tuesday's events in Stockholm. To put this in context, we are in the middle of a tour — with sold-out shows last night in Oslo, tomorrow in Copenhagen, and Saturday in Zurich rounding out this week alone — and continuing until the beginning of August.
"The Swedish authorities were very aware of this, yet continually threatened us over a 12-hour period with between 5 days and 3 weeks incarceration without bail if Axl did not 'cooperate.' They were fully aware that there were millions of dollars at stake, not to mention the hopes of tens of thousands of fans who had paid for tickets to see GUNS N' ROSES.
"The point is, the police report should not be taken at face value, and if one were to be explicit, this experience is tantamount to being held for ransom. If the context were any different, Axl would probably have preferred to spend the time in jail in order to ensure that all the facts were a matter of public record.
"In addition to this, we are also not happy at the treatment he received. He was arrested after being accosted by a security guard in his hotel, following which he was physically mistreated by the arresting officer in the process of which a valuable bracelet went missing not to be returned. While in custody, he was held down by 5 police officers while a doctor tried to take blood to administer a drug test 3 different times. This illustrates not only the level of incompetence, but malice involved. The results of the test were negative, but the exercise was a clear example of an authoritarian approach trying to flex its muscles. This is the same draconian approach that assumes the security guard in question is telling the truth just because he has a badge.
"Here you have a situation where authorities are skewing information their way, with the media all too ready to run with the biased reports. I did not receive a single phone call Tuesday to verify or comment on any of the reported events. There is a long history of claims by law enforcement, media and others against Axl that have not held up against scrutiny, legal or otherwise. He has had countless baseless lawsuits brought by numerous attorneys and nothing of any merit has ever held up.
"This is not a criticism of the people of Stockholm. The 15,000 people at the show Monday night were amazing, and everyone we met before and after were terrific, until the encounter with the over exuberant security guard. That is where encounters with real people stop and the authorities attempt to take over. There were a number of people involved who treated Axl well, while the conduct of some was questionable and others still deplorable. Regardless, GUNS N' ROSES will return to Sweden where they will play once again for the people, not the authorities.
"Love him or hate him, don't get it twisted."
06-30-06, 11:47 AM
#8
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Originally Posted by nodeerforamonth
blabbermouth: from Axl's manager
[....]
"The point is, the police report should not be taken at face value
[....]
"Love him or hate him, don't get it twisted."
[....]
"The point is, the police report should not be taken at face value
[....]
"Love him or hate him, don't get it twisted."
[That is to say, I am more inclined to believe the Swedish police than Axl's manager!]
Last edited by benedict; 06-30-06 at 11:54 AM.
07-01-06, 10:02 AM
#9
DVD Talk Limited Edition
I didn't get it when the articles were saying Axl handled himself like a gentleman in the Hilfiger incident. This new story makes all right in the Rock and Roll world again.
