Guns N' Roses manager says Axl Rose was held for ransom

Guns N' Roses manager Merck Mercuriadis issued a statement late last week in which he claimed that singer W. Axl Rose was virtually "held for ransom" after being arrested for causing a disturbance and attacking a security guard at a Stockholm, Sweden hotel last Tuesday (June 27th). According to the BBC, Mercuriadis stated that Swedish authorities, who held Rose in jail for hours after his arrest, were aware that the band was in the middle of a European tour, but "continually threatened us over a 12-hour period with between five days and three 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."

Mercuriadis said that the experience was "tantamount to being held for ransom," and added that Axl had been accosted by the guard and "physically mistreated" during his arrest.

Axl eventually admitted to the charges and paid approximately $6,800 in fines, one-fifth of which went to the guard, whom Rose bit on the leg.

Guns N' Roses were able to proceed to their Wednesday night June 28th show in Oslo, Norway without further incident. The band plays on Wednesday, July 5th, in Helsinki, Finland.
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