The Crown Office has dropped charges against a "police" stripogram after appeal court judges ruled that his baton was not an offensive weapon, it was announced.
Stuart Kennedy, 25, was due at Aberdeen Sheriff Court on Monday May 12 to face charges of impersonating a police officer and carrying an offensive weapon.
The proceedings were dropped days after judges at the Court of Appeal in Edinburgh agreed th
at Mr Kennedy's truncheon was not an offensive weapon in relation to a separate case.
The university student, who performs under the stage name Sergeant Eros, went on trial last year accused of carrying two batons and a spray without lawful authority.
His case was thrown out of Aberdeen Sheriff Court after the sheriff ruled he had a "reasonable excuse" to carry the batons. The sheriff's decision was appealed by prosecutors but appeal judges last month backed the sheriff's ruling.
In a statement the Crown Office said: "Following the decision by the Criminal Court of Appeal last month, we have concluded that no further proceedings should be taken."
Mr Kennedy, from Aberdeen, said he was angry with the way the case has been handled.
He said: "I'm angry it has taken 10 months for them to drop the charge. It has been a huge amount of time, money and extreme stress being in court.
"It has been a catalogue of incompetence from the fiscal and the police. It has hugely affected my life and had a massive effect on my life, career wise, socially, and my mental wellbeing."
But he said the experience would not deter him from performing his act: "We have not stopped doing police strips as we know we had not done anything wrong. And it would be a very foolish police officer who would arrest Sergeant Eros on his job."
Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2008, All Rights Reserved.
The full article contains 321 words and appears in Press Association newspaper.
