Life may be imitating art in New Zealand, where AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd is being accused of trying to order up a dirty deed.
Rudd, 60, has been charged with "attempting to procure a murder," according to reports. He has also been charged with possession of methamphetamine and cannabis, and threatening to kill, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Police said Rudd attempted to hire a hitman to kill two men, according to Stuff.co.nz. During a court appearance on Thursday, Judge Louis Bidois withheld the names of the would-be victims as well as that of the man Rudd allegedly tried to procure for the deed.
Phil Rudd in court pic.twitter.com/GAYytLkfD9
— tony wall (@tonywalljourno) November 6, 2014
Rudd did not enter a plea, was released on bail and ordered to have no contact with the man he allegedly tried to hire. He is scheduled to be in court again in three weeks, Stuff reported.
Journalist Tony Wall, who has been tweeting images from the scene, said Rudd faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Earlier in the day, police raided his home in Tauranga, about 125 southeast of Auckland.
Former AC/DC manager Michael Browning told the Daily Mail that the accusations were a "bit of a shock, but there you go."
Born Phillip Hugh Norman Witschke Rudzevecuis in Australia, Rudd was with the band from 1975 until being fired in 1983, then re-joined in 1994. Having played on many of the band's biggest hits, he was among the members inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.
He most recently released a solo album, "Head Job," and in September told Blabbermouth he expected to tour with AC/DC after the release of the band's upcoming album, "Rock or Bust."
However, last month the band posted a new publicity photo without Rudd. He also did not appear in two videos recorded for "Rock or Bust." While singer Brian Johnson said Rudd was absent from the photo shoot due to a “family emergency," Ultimate Classic Rock reported on speculation that the photo was a sign Rudd had been booted from the band again.
AC/DC most recently made headlines when co-founder and guitarist Malcolm Young retired. His family later said that Young had been battling dementia.
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