Vulvodynia posted a lengthy statement on Sunday, May 9 detailing the firing of their vocalist Duncan Bentley after he allegedly tried to kill their drummer Tom Hughes. In their statement, said "[Duncan] threatened and tried to kill our drummer Tom. Tom ended in hospital and sustained various injuries including a badly broken nose," later noting that this wasn't the first time threats and violence had surfaced from the vocalist.
Hughes has now posted his own statement, letting everyone know that he's alright and going into much more detail about what happened. Hughes claims Bentley started off the night just fun, but got progressively drunker and became "irratic [sic] and irritable and unnecessarily mean about people and towards homeless people." Hughes then claims that he asked Bentley if he'd been drinking, at which point Bentley snapped and the incident occurred.
Hughes also notes that Bentley was arrested in Prague and that he's been in touch with Bentley's wife to make sure he gets home safely. Hughes' full statement is below.
"Just want to say thanks to everyone who has reached out personally and through messages. I'm doing ok other than being in a little pain and we just want to try to continue the tour and make the best of this awful situation.
"We were not in any sort of drunken brawl. We had an amazing night out with friends after the show and towards the end of the night started noticing changes in his behaviour with him becoming irratic and irritable and unnecessarily mean about people and towards homeless people around so when we got back to the hotel I asked him if he had been drinking at all and he absolutely snapped. I literally said 'Duncan as a friend I need to know if you have been drinking tonight' and he absolutely lost it.
"This is not the first time this has happened at all, had to deal with a very similar situation in the Philippines just over a month ago when he was late for lobby call for our flight and I went to his room to wake him and when I did he snapped and attacked me punching me multiple times, breaking my ribs.
"We had been considering telling him to leave the band since then but he'd assured us he would quit drinking and had been seeking professional help. Tours are planned months in advance and I had been the one responsible for signing surety on merch orders and many of the financial things that allow us to tour. If we missed the tour I will have been financially ruined for life so we decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and continue with him and his promise to not drink at all.
"This latest situation just proves that it was never the alcohol at all that sets this off and is a much darker mental issues. After this situation I'd sent him multiple links to AA and other alcohol treatment programs as well as psychologists and tried to be there for him. I also tried with the help of our Manager to help him get a sponsor who comes from our scene and understands the music life and it's issues and wasn't just gonna push god on him as treatment. He never once reached out to that person.
"We did not abandon Duncan in a random country with nothing. He was about to be arrested for his behaviour but the police had said that we would have had to wait in Prague for weeks of court dates and as much as we wanted to we we're not in a position to do so. With this the police removed him from the hotel and escorted him away from us telling him to leave him.
"Even after all this and spending most of the day at the hospital when we got to our accommodation I still reached out to his wife Cathrine yesterday evening checking in on him and letting her know how to change his flight home as well as sent him money to be able to get to where he needs to be to catch his flight home against the wishes of everyone else involved as I didn't want to leave him stranded.
"I hope he is able get the treatment he needs and get better. He will never be in the band again but I hope that he can get treated and sort his life out. I do not wish any violence against him and hope he can get his life sorted."
