Def Leppard’s longtime drummer Rick Allen has issued a statement following a “brutal” attack last week.
Allen suffered a head injury after he was allegedly assaulted by a teenager in a “sneak attack” a day after the band performed in Florida last week.
Per TMZ, the drummer was having a cigarette outside the Four Seasons Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, when 19-year-old suspect Max Hartley allegedly charged at him at full speed from behind a nearby pole, barrelling him over and causing Allen to strike his head on the ground.
A woman who reportedly tried to intervene was also attacked by Hartley, who began hitting her and dragged her by her hair when she attempted to go back into the hotel.
ABC News published an exclusive statement from Allen regarding the incident.
“Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support,” the statement said. “Your love and prayers are truly helping. My wife Lauren [Monroe] was thankfully not with me at the time of the incident. We are together now, and working on recovering in a safe space.”
Adding that the family was now focused on “healing for everyone involved,” the statement asked fans to join in their efforts to “move from confusion and shock to compassion and empathy”.
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“We understand this act of violence can be triggering for so many people,” it said. “To all of the fans, veterans and first responders in our global community, we are thinking of you all. Together with love, we can all get through these difficult times.”
Hartley allegedly fled to a nearby hotel immediately following the assault and was arrested after he allegedly damaged numerous cars in a parking garage there.
He has been charged with four counts of criminal mischief, a felony; one count of misdemeanour battery and one count of aggravated battery, according to a Fort Lauderdale police incident report, and was released after posting bail.
