Video: 'Paul McCartney Released from Prison in Japan to Screaming Fans - CBS Evening News - January 25, 1980'
(Friday, January 25, 1980, 4:00 p.m. Japan Standard Time) — Paul McCartney was released from the Metropolitan Tokyo Detention Center this afternoon and deported after the prosecutor’s office decided the former Beatle had “been punished enough” for allegedly trying to smuggle marijuana into Japan 10 days ago.
Many of the more than 100 teen-aged girls, some of whom gathered daily outside the jail hoping for a glimpse of their idol, wept when he was released.
The 37-year-old rock star gave them a thumbs-up sign as they chanted, “Paul, Paul.”
Flanked by 12 policemen, McCartney, his wife, Linda, and their four children left Tokyo’s Narita International Airport at 9:35 p.m. JST (7:35 a.m. EST) aboard Japan Air Lines flight 403 bound for Paris with stops at Anchorage, Alaska, and Amsterdam’s Schipol Airport, where they caught a private plane to their home in Scotland.
“Of course, Linda is delighted,” said Haruko Minakami, a spokeswoman for Mrs. McCartney. She “left her hotel in such a hurry she didn’t even pack.”
McCartney was arrested at Narita on Jan. 16, 1980, when be arrived with his band Wings for an 11-concert tour. Customs officials said they found 7.7 ounces of marijuana in McCartney’s luggage.
The concert tour was canceled and members of the band flew to the United States last weekend, while McCartney was held for 10 days in a private cell at a Tokyo jail. He was questioned repeatedly by police as authorities debated whether to file charges against him. A conviction for violating Japan’s drug smuggling laws could have brought a seven-year prison term.
The prosecutors office decided not to file charges because McCartney admitted bringing the marijuana into the country “purely for his own use,” said an official who declined to be identified.
Video: 'Paul McCartney arrested in Japan 1980 Full rare video'
Since he did not intend to sell the drug during his stay and he only planned a short visit, it was decided he should be released, the official said, adding, “He’s been punished enough.”
He said another point in McCartney’s favor was that he had “shown signs of repentance and apologized.”
Japanese newspapers had speculated from the time he was arrested that McCartney would be deported rather than brought to trial. That is the usual punishment for foreigners caught bringing in marijuana for their own use only. But there was considerable criticism of McCartney since he had been denied a Japanese visa in 1975 because of two previous marijuana convictions in Europe.
Members of McCartney’s entourage said he was treated well in jail and was in “good spirits.” His wife said the jailers wouldn’t let him have his guitar or writing materials, and he spent most of his time meditating.
However, the police reportedly made several concessions for him, including – letting him sleep on a bed instead of on the floor and letting his wife bring him food because he is a vegetarian.
Rock fans gathered each day outside the Tokyo Narcotics Detention Center, where McCartney was held, hoping for a glimpse of the musician as he was taken from the center to the prosecutors office for questioning.
