Britney Spears had been trying to "congratulate" Victor Wembanyama on his NBA success when she was allegedly struck by one of his bodyguards.
Britney Spears speaks out after she was allegedly struck in the face by an NBA star's bodyguard
The 41-year-old pop superstar - who regained control of her multimillion-dollar fortune and various aspects of her life when a conservatorship arrangement was terminated in 2021 - is said to have "grabbed" the sports player from behind when she spotted him at a restaurant in Las Vegas on Thursday (05.06.23) evening but was allegedly hit by a member of his security team and has now claimed that she "tapped on him on the shoulder" because it was such a "loud" environment.
She wrote on Instagram: "Traumatic experiences are not new to me and I have had my fair share of them. I was not prepared for what happened to me last night. I recognized an athlete in my hotel lobby as I was heading to dinner. I later went to a restaurant at a different hotel and saw him again. I decided to approach him and congratulate him on his success. It was really loud, so I tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention."
The 'Gimme More' legend went on to add that she was "aware" that Victor had made a statement in he alleged that Britney had indeed "grabbed him" but she insisted that it was a "simple" tap on the shoulder and reminded him that even though she had been "swarmed" by a group of 20 fans herself, none of her security team lashed out.
She added: "I am aware of the player's statement where he mentions 'I grabbed him from behind' but I simply tapped him on the shoulder. His security then back handed me in the face without looking back, in front of a crowd. Nearly knocking me down and causing my glasses off my face.
I get swarmed by people all the time. In fact, that night. I was swarmed by a group of at least 20 fans. My security team didn't hit any of them."
According to TMZ, the incident has now become a "criminal investigation" and on the morning after it took place, Victor told the press that he had no idea that Britney was the woman involved in the altercation because he was unable to see her face and just kept walking into the Catch restaurant.
What's more, eyewitness Brian Grajales claimed that the Louisiana native had been using a faux British accent throughout the alleged incident and could be heard yelling as she was escorted from the premises.
He said: "She was approaching him, like I said, with a British accent saying 'Excuse me, sir!' and I guess trying to get his attention for possibly a picture but when they walked right into the Catch restaurant, that's when she leaned in and got her way into this circle. She started to put his hand on his back shoulder or his back - he's pretty tall, so towards his back and that's when the bodyguard just turned around, slapped her face, and knocked off her sunglasses.
"I didn't know it was Britney til this morning. Victor walked right into the restaurant and kept going. A couple of people stayed behind sort of to, I would say, to check on her. I'm guessing they didn't know it was Britney so just to restrain this person from getting any closer. That's when they walked her out of the restaurant and she screamed - using a British accent - 'This is f****** America', it was an angry tone.
"We didn't see her at that point walk in but when we finished our meal and walked out, she was still hanging around and I guess she had a group of people around her. And then she walked through ARIA covering her face with a hat."
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