Kasabian’s Serge Pizzorno looks stressed as ex bandmate Tom Meighan is convicted of brutal assault
KASABIAN’S Serge Pizzorno looks stressed as his ex-bandmate Tom Meighan is convicted of a brutal assault on his ex-fiancee.
The Kasabian guitarist and songwriter, 39, was spotted out and about during a family seaside trip to Devon on Monday.
Serge is seen sitting on a wall beside his dog with his head in his hands.
The star looks distressed, dressed in black tracksuit trousers and a white T-shirt.
After briefly petting his dog, he stands up and puts on a jacket as he walks away.
These photos came the day Kasabian announced frontman Tom Meighan left the band.
Since then, the band members revealed they demanded he leave after finding out about his assault charge.
The group has released a statement claiming “he misled a lot of fans” after court proceedings yesterday.
Ex-frontman Tom pleaded guilty at Leicester Magistrates’ Court to attacking his ex-fiancee Vikki Ager while drunk on April 9.
In a statement released tonight, the band wrote: “Now that the legal proceedings have been concluded, we can comment on the departure of Tom Meighan from Kasabian.
“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.
“As soon as we found out about the charges made against Tom, we as a band made the decision that we cold 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 victim in al of this. Domestic violence is something that can never be excused.
“Thank you for your support at this difficult time. See you all soon, Kasabian x.”
Before the announcement, the band said he was struggling with “personal issues”.
The rocker, 39, broke down in court yesterday as CCTV showed him hitting ex-fiancee Vikki Ager and then dragging her by the ankles into the back garden of their home.
Meighan also threw his partner of four years across a room and into a hamster cage before threatening her with a wooden pallet during the “sustained attack”.
Ms Ager was left with swelling to her eye, a head injury, bruises to her knees, elbow and ankle as well as reddening around the neck.
The singer wiped his eyes with a tissue and held his head in his hands as he admitted the domestic abuse charge at Leicester Magistrates Court heard.
But he avoided jail after District Judge Nick Watson ordered him to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.
Domestic abuse charity Women’s Aid wrote on Twitter: “Disappointing to see @KasabianHQ say the reason their lead singer was leaving the band was due to ‘personal reasons that affected his behaviour’.
“Today he pleaded guilty to assaulting his former fiancée in front of a child. There is no excuse for abuse.”
Sophie Walker, CEO of Young Women’s Trust, added: “A day after #DomesticAbuseBill passes Tom Meighan gets community service rather than a prison sentence and a small-mouthed goodbye from his band referring to ‘personal issues’.
“We have a long, long way to go.”