Joost Klein’s lawyer tells Swedish press he will appear in court in Malmö in June
Joost Klein has to appear in court in Malmö, Sweden, for the incident that occurred during the Eurovision Song Festival last week, his lawyer told Swedish broadcaster SVT. The local prosecution service and the court would not confirm the news, but Klein's attorney said a provisional trial date has been set for early June.
Police have alleged Klein made criminally punishable threats, but Klein’s lawyer, Jan-Åke Fält, denied the accusations against the singer. “I believe the chances of an acquittal are good,” Fält said.
A Eurovision Song Contest employee pressed charges last week following an incident backstage after Klein’s semi-final performance. Dutch Eurovision broadcaster AvroTros claimed that Klein made “a threatening movement” towards the woman because she filmed him despite prior agreements with the organizers.
Fält said Klein pushed the photographer’s camera away, but denied the allegation that he made a threat in any way. "As I understand it, there was an agreement between him and the management. It was a sensitive occasion when he left the stage where he was not allowed to be photographed. He was to be met by his team, but there was a photographer. He asked the person to stop filming," the attorney stated. The camera was pushed aside at that moment.
The woman’s claims were reportedly different from the Dutch broadcaster’s version of events. The contest organizer, European Broadcasting Union, sided with their worker, and first suspended Klein before disqualifying him ahead of the competition’s final.
Fält told Swedish media companies that the police are still working on the investigation. The attorney plans to ask a number of Dutch witnesses to testify.
Klein has not yet commented publicly on the incident. He was questioned by police in Malmö, but was never taken into custody. He was also allowed to leave Sweden and return to the Netherlands without objection.
