J.K. Rowling Wins J.K. Rowling vs. “Half-Blood Prince” Thieves
The Scotsman (spoiler warning: their article reveals the name of the character rumored to die in HBP) today wrote that J.K. Rowling has won a court injunction against the two men, aged 19 and 37, accused of stealing copies of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and subsequently trying to sell them.
In a statement on Jo’s behalf, legal firm Reynolds Porter Chamberlain said, “This order was made following our client’s discovery this morning that a copy of the forthcoming Harry Potter book, Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince, had been obtained by unauthorized persons who had subsequently offered the book to newspaper journalists.”
A Northamptonshire Police spokesman said: “We have charged a 37-year-old Kettering man with possession of an offensive weapon and with handling stolen property and a 19-year-old with theft and possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. Both have been released on bail.”
The London Times also covers the story today saying John Askill, a reporter for the Sun, met with the two men who were offering the book for a fee of £50,000.
“I looked down the barrel of a gun — and thought I was about to die for the sake of Harry Potter,” he writes in the Sun today.
For two horrific minutes, I pleaded with the gunman not to shoot. Then he fired over my shoulder and into the air. I headed straight for my car and drove off, still shaking, leaving the two men with Harry Potter’s secrets.