Eurovision Contestant Banned From Final Amid Police Investigation

A contestant on the popular European singing competition Eurovision has been banned from performing in the final … and, organizers say it’s because the police are investigating him.

Joost Klein — who’s representing the Netherlands in this year’s edition of the contest — will not compete in the final because Swedish police are looking into a claim made by a female member of the production crew, the Eurovision team announced in a statement Saturday.

While the European Broadcasting Union won’t say exactly what the allegations entail… they do mention it occurred after the semi-final performance on Thursday night — adding it wouldn’t be appropriate for Klein to continue while the investigation proceeds.

The news comes less than 24 hours after the EBU barred Joost from rehearsal … a shock move that sent social media into a frenzy.

Some online speculated the alleged incident may have involved Joost and another performer … but, the EBU says that’s simply not the case.

Klein was one of 26 performers who qualified for the final, taking place in just a couple hours … but, the show will move on with just 25 songs.

BTW … Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS put out its own version of events — saying Klein’s repeated requests not to be filmed backstage were ignored, which they say led to a threatening movement from Joost to the camera and the subsequent ban.