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Under the deal, George will enter a drug program in the UK
and perform five days of community service in Manhattan. He
will pay a $1,000 fine and must avoid arrest on any charges
over the next six months.
George issued a statement saying "I am relieved and
happy that this case has been disposed of, and would like to
thank the judge, the district attorney and my attorney, Lou
Freeman, for the fair and speedy way it was dealt
with."
It went on to say "I love New York and am looking
forward to coming back and working in the States later this
year." It was signed, "George."
George must return to court on 9 June with written
proof of his stay in a rehabilitation program.
If convicted at trial on the drug possession trial, O'Dowd
faced a possible sentence of one to 5 1/2 years, said
Barbara Thompson, spokeswoman for the Manhattan district
attorney.
He was arrested in October last year after he called police
to report an alleged burglary in his Manhattan apartment.
Officers found a small pile of cocaine next to a computer. A
charge of criminal possession of a controlled substance was
dropped as part of the plea bargain.
George claimed after the arrest that the cocaine was not his
and had been left at his apartment by a guest from a recent
party he hosted. If George had gone to trial on the false
reporting charge and had been convicted, he could have spent
up to a year in prison.
His manager said George hopes to fulfil his community
service obligation by putting on a concert to benefit AIDS
research.
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