The remaining members of Kasabian have broken their silence following former frontman Tom Meighan being convicted of assaulting his ex Vikki Ager.
Earlier this week, it was confirmed Tom had left the band however a statement said the decision had come “by mutual consent”.
Following his guilty plea and conviction today, the band has released a further statement making it clear they made him leave as soon as they found out about the charges against him.
The statement, shared with the group’s 365,000 followers, read: “Now that the legal proceedings have been concluded, we can comment on the departure of Tom Meighan from Kasabian.
Kasabian confirmed they made Tom Meighan leave the band after learning of the charges against him (Image: WENN.com)
“No one in the band wanted this to happen. We have all worked so hard for the past 23 years and had big plans for our future together. We’re completely heartbroken.
“But we were left with no choice but to ask Tom to leave the band. There is absolutely no way we can condone his assault conviction. Domestic violence and abuse of any kind is totally unacceptable.
Tom was sentenced to 200 hours of unpaid work after pleading guilty to assaulting his ex-fiancée (Image: PA)
“As soon as we found out about the charges made against Tom, we as a band made the decision that we could no longer work with him. Unfortunately we had to hold back this information until he was found guilty in court.
“We were led to believe that Tom would hold his hands up and in his statement tell everyone what he’d done but he chose not to, misleading a lot of fans.
“Ultimately, as much as Tom has hurt us all, we’re not the victims in all of this. Domestic violence is something that can never be excused.”
Tom previously thanked fans for support after it was announced he had left the band (Image: SWNS)
Tom previously said in his own statement: “Following today’s announcement I just wanted to let you all know that I am doing well.
“I’m in a really good place now. Thanks for all your love and support. I’ll be seeing you all very soon.”
Tom pleaded guilty to the domestic abuse charge at Leicester Magistrates Court today.
District Judge Nick Watson ordered him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work, dodging jail.
The 39-year-old was seen on CCTV footage hitting his ex-fiancée Vikki Ager, who he had been seeing for four years.
He also dragged her by her ankles into the back garden of their home.
Tom also threw Vikki across a room into a hamster cage, before he threatened her with a wooden pallet during the “sustained attack”.
Vikki was left with a swollen eye, a head injury, bruises to her knees, elbow and ankle, and reddening around her neck.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
