Chris Brown has pleaded not guilty to an assault charge relating to a nightclub attack in 2023 after arriving in court in London on June 20th.
Brown was charged with grievous bodily harm with intent in Manchester in May. This was relating to an alleged attack in a London nightclub in 2023; the ‘Yeah Yeah Yeah’ singer is accused of attacking music producer Abraham Diaw with a bottle at the Tape nightclub on February 19th, 2023.
Brown faces further charges of assault: assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and having an offensive weapon. These charges were added to his indictment ahead of the June 20th hearing. Nonetheless, the judge adjourned the arraignment for these two further counts, as Brown did not enter a plea. Consequently, there will be another plea hearing date on July 11th.
Brown’s co-defendant, Omolulu Akinlolu, who performs under the name HoodyBaby, also entered a not guilty plea to the charge of grievous bodily harm.
Only a handful of hours after stepping off the stage in Cardiff, the rapper appeared at Southwark Crown Court to deny the charge of grievous bodily harm. He was met by a small cluster of fans and a large gaggle of photographers.
Brown was kept in custody in Manchester for a week after his arrest at the five-star Lowry hotel in Salford, Greater Manchester. On his first performance in the city, he said to fans, “Thank you to the jail, it was really nice.” He has since been released after paying a £5 million security fee to the court.
His court appearance had been pushed from June 13th to June 20th because of his tour commitments. Brown has been across the UK on a stadium tour, which included two nights at Manchester Co-op Live arena, with a third set for June 24th. On June 21st and 22nd, he will perform two nights at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.