It has been revealed the bodyguard who escorted Sir Peter Jackson on the red carpet at the premiere of The Hobbit last week had failed a criminal history check and should not have been granted a security licence.
Thomas Andrew Gibson was due to appear in the Wellington District Court today on assault charges, but the case was thrown out.
Gibson was also with Sir Peter and Elijah Wood at a Hobbit costume party last Monday. 3 News was on the receiving end when we tried to ask Wood a question, Gibson showing us the door.
He applied to the Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority for a certificate of approval to undertake security work in October.
The Ministry Of Justice says Gibson was issued a temporary certificate while his application was being considered. When the ministry realised he had failed the criminal history check, they cancelled his certificate. Unfortunately, it had already been mailed to him.
Gibson was due to appear in the Wellington District Court today on a charge of common assault, but the charge was dropped.
"The police elected not to offer any evidence whatsoever, you should ask them why they made that decision – they obviously had very good reasons for that," says Gibson's lawyer Andrew Davie.
3 News is waiting to hear from the police for their side of the story.
3 News
source: newshub archive
