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The Rolling Stones' guitarist Keith Richards is said to have been involved in a very heated argument with original drummer Brian Jones, hours before his death.
The Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday claim to have seen official police documents that show that Richards 'pulled a knife' on the founding member on the day he was found dead, assumed drowned, in 1969.
The claims come from Jan Bell, the daughter of Jones' builder and minder on his farm Frank Thorogood. The police report, titled ‘Briefing Note: Death of Brian Jones’, apparently reads: ‘She (Bell) said that her father had told her a number of years ago that on the day of Brian’s death, Messrs Mick JAGGER and Keith RICHARDS visited Brian JONES at the farm in the morning and her father was present when Brian was asked by both men whether he would give up the name of the “Rolling Stones” to them and agree to a financial settlement.'
‘Brian apparently declined to do so and it is alleged that Keith RICHARDS drew a knife. It is suggested that THOROGOOD calmed them down and both JAGGER and RICHARDS left the house.’
Thorogood died in 1993, before allegations arose that he in fact murdered Jones.
The Rolling Stones with Brian Jones in 1966
The Mail states that the 'unsubstantiated claims' were dismissed by officers at the time, but naturally add further speculation around conspiracy theories that surround Jones’s death. Many Stones fans have since wondered whether Jones really did drown under the influence of drink and drugs or if it was under more suspicious circumstances.
After tracing the officer who originally interviewed Jan Bell, The Mail say that the officer, who did not want to be named, claimed: "‘I arranged to meet lawyers representing Mick Jagger and Keith Richards – two firms, one in New York and one in Los Angeles – to talk specifically about Jan Bell’s statement to Sussex Police, about them being at the house on the day of the death and about the knife being drawn. But the Assistant Chief Constable intervened and blocked me from meeting the Stones’ lawyers. The ACC drew a line under it.
"I was told to put details of Jan Bell’s interview into a report, and that was it"
The Rolling Stones are yet to comment on the claims.
The band will return to headline London's Hyde Park again on 13 July, 2013. For more information visit Gigwise gig tickets.
