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Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen thanks fans for 'overwhelming support' after violent assault

Rick Allen of Def Leppard performs onstage during the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena on September 21, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Rick Allen of Def Leppard performs onstage during the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena on September 21, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Ethan Miller/Getty Images Rick Allen playing drums with Def Leppard

One week after being violently assaulted by a teenager outside of a Florida hotel, Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen shared a statement with fans to assure everyone he is recovering.

"Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support. Your love and prayers are truly helping. My wife Lauren [Monroe] was thankfully not with me at the time of the incident. We are together now, and working on recovering in a safe space," Allen said in a statement to ABC News.

He continued, "We ask you to join us in our effort to move from confusion and shock to compassion and empathy. We understand this act of violence can be triggering for so many people. To all of the fans, veterans, and first responders in our global community, we are thinking of you all. Together with love, we can all get through these difficult times."

Def Leppard performed alongside Mötley Crüe at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood, part of their ongoing joint world tour, on March 12. The next day, Allen — who lost his left arm after a near-fatal car accident in 1984 — was smoking a cigarette outside the Four Seasons Hotel in Fort Lauderdale when a 19-year old, identified by police as Max Edward Hartley from Ohio, ran up and knocked him to the ground. Allen banged his head on concrete, causing injury. When a woman attempted to assist him, the assailant attacked her as well.

Police arrested Hartley and charged him with criminal mischief and aggravated battery. He has since been released on bail.

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