US pop starlet Maggie Lindemann has told of ‘five days confined in a living hell’ in a Malaysian jail after her arrest last month for playing a concert without the right visa.
But immigration officials have hit back at Lindemann’s claim, saying she was detained for less than 24 hours.
The 20-year-old singer posted a message on social media website Instagram on Thursday apologising to fans who came to her concert at The Bee venue in Kuala Lumpur, only to see her arrested on stage.
US pop star Maggie Lindemann, 20, claims she suffered ‘five days confined in a living hell’ in Malaysia, but immigration officials say she spent less than 24 hours in jail
Her apology also mentioned fans who bought tickets to see her in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, the next day, and in Singapore on June 26.
‘For reasons I can’t go into right now, I was detained and arrested mid-way through my set and spent the next five days confined in a living hell’, Lindemann wrote.
But Kuala Lumpur immigration chief Hamidi Adam said she was arrested after a tip-off that she was performing without the correct artist’s permit.
‘She wants to do a show in our country, she has to apply for a professional visit pass,’ he told AFP.
‘But the organizer did not listen to advice and they proceeded with the show.’
Maggie Lindemann’s instagram message apologising to fans, which faiuled to mention the reason for her arrest or the four others detained with her
Maggie Lindemann performs onstage at Irving Plaza on March 12, 2019 in New York City (file photo)
On Friday, Immigration Department director-general Datuk Khairul Dzaimee Daud clarified that Lindemann was arrested at 9:30pm on June 21, and released at 7pm the next day – a stay in jail of about 22 hours.
‘The Immigration Department would like to stress that the claim that the subject was arrested for five days is false and incorrect,’ he said.
Khairul added that two other US citizens and two Malaysians were arrested in the swoop and released the next day, something which Lindemann failed to mention in her post.
The Bee management blamed the incident on a visa permit agent who falsely told them LIndemann was cleared to play.
‘We understand that the incident occurred due to the wrongful actions of the visa permit agent, who has also misinformed the organisers that the show was approved by the relevant authorities, and permitted to go on,’ The Bee said in a statement.
‘The agent was subsequently charged, found guilty for his negligence and had to pay a fine for his actions.’
‘We understand that the organisers of the show worked around the clock and did everything in their power to successfully get her and her crew released and placed in a safe and comfortable environment pending the Immigration hearing date, upon which she was returned home to the US,’ it continued.
‘For clarity, The Bee, as a venue, was not responsible for the arrest and does not condone any foreign acts to proceed to perform when there are such irregularities,’ the statement stressed.
‘We are deeply sorry that this unfortunate incident happened to Maggie and we hope to welcome her to The Bee again,’ it added.
Lindemann, from Dallas, Texas, rose to fame after posting videos of her singing in social media sites.
The Los Angeles-based singer’s 2015 debut single ‘knocking on your heart’ reached number 20 on the iTunes alternative chart, while her fourth release ‘pretty girl’ reached number 8 in the UK chart the following year.
Lindemann told Lesbian magazine Diva in 2016 that she was bisexual, but ‘a lot of people have a hard time… believing it.’
Maggie Lindemann performs at the Billboard Hot 100 Music Festival in New York on August 20 2017 (file photo)