Singer Chris Brown pleads guilty over bottle attack at London nightclub
Singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty to affray over a 2023 brawl at a London nightclub. The plea led prosecutors to drop more serious charges before his October sentencing.
Grammy-winning singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty on Friday to brawling at a London nightclub in 2023, admitting to affray in a case in which prosecutors said he hit music producer Abraham Diaw on the head with a bottle.
The singer changed his plea during a hearing at Southwark Crown Court after previously denying more serious charges linked to what prosecutors described as a “vicious attack”, as reported by Associated Press.
Brown’s friend and vocal coach, Omololu Akinlolu, also pleaded guilty to affray. In return for his plea, prosecutors dropped charges of assault, attempting to cause grievous bodily harm, and possessing an offensive weapon, namely a bottle.
Brown and Akinlolu had been due to stand trial in October.
The case relates to an incident at the Tape nightclub in Mayfair in February 2023. Brown had denied attacking Diaw with a bottle, but prosecutors said the fight was captured on surveillance camera in front of a club full of people.
The affray charge accepted by the defendants says, "Chris Brown and Omololu Akinlolu on February 19, 2023 used or threatened unlawful violence towards another and their conduct taken together was such as would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his personal safety."
Claire Campbell, a senior prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service, after the guilty plea said, "This was a vicious and unprovoked attack by Brown and Akinlolu in a crowded nightclub where Brown used a glass bottle as a weapon to strike the victim’s head twice."
Prosecutors said Akinlolu then joined in and punched the victim in the head.
"This kind of violence is entirely unacceptable, and the Crown Prosecution Service will work tirelessly – with the police and partners across the criminal justice system – to pursue cases like this, and prove that no one is above the law," Campbell added.
Brown left the United Kingdom after the brawl, but was arrested in May 2025 at a Manchester hotel after flying to the city for a concert. He had been free on bail of 5 million pounds, which allowed him to tour Europe and North America last summer. He was freed on bail again on Friday and will be sentenced on October 26 on the affray charge, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
Brown, wearing a tan suit, gold-rimmed sunglasses and a St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap, signed autographs for fans as he left the courthouse.
Brown rose to stardom as a teenager in 2005 and won his first Grammy for best R&B album in 2011 for FAME. He earned his second in the same category for “11:11 (Deluxe)” in 2025.
The singer has faced repeated legal trouble since his felony conviction in the 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend singer Rihanna, hours before the pair were due to perform at the Grammys.
In 2013, Brown was charged with misdemeanour assault for striking a man outside a Washington, DC, hotel. He was later ordered into rehab and then dismissed from the facility for violating its rules.
The 37-year-old has also been arrested in several US states over altercations, and in 2019 he was arrested in Paris and questioned on suspicion of rape before being released without charge.
Grammy-winning singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty on Friday to brawling at a London nightclub in 2023, admitting to affray in a case in which prosecutors said he hit music producer Abraham Diaw on the head with a bottle.
The singer changed his plea during a hearing at Southwark Crown Court after previously denying more serious charges linked to what prosecutors described as a “vicious attack”, as reported by Associated Press.
Brown’s friend and vocal coach, Omololu Akinlolu, also pleaded guilty to affray. In return for his plea, prosecutors dropped charges of assault, attempting to cause grievous bodily harm, and possessing an offensive weapon, namely a bottle.
Brown and Akinlolu had been due to stand trial in October.
The case relates to an incident at the Tape nightclub in Mayfair in February 2023. Brown had denied attacking Diaw with a bottle, but prosecutors said the fight was captured on surveillance camera in front of a club full of people.
The affray charge accepted by the defendants says, "Chris Brown and Omololu Akinlolu on February 19, 2023 used or threatened unlawful violence towards another and their conduct taken together was such as would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his personal safety."
Claire Campbell, a senior prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service, after the guilty plea said, "This was a vicious and unprovoked attack by Brown and Akinlolu in a crowded nightclub where Brown used a glass bottle as a weapon to strike the victim’s head twice."
Prosecutors said Akinlolu then joined in and punched the victim in the head.
"This kind of violence is entirely unacceptable, and the Crown Prosecution Service will work tirelessly – with the police and partners across the criminal justice system – to pursue cases like this, and prove that no one is above the law," Campbell added.
Brown left the United Kingdom after the brawl, but was arrested in May 2025 at a Manchester hotel after flying to the city for a concert. He had been free on bail of 5 million pounds, which allowed him to tour Europe and North America last summer. He was freed on bail again on Friday and will be sentenced on October 26 on the affray charge, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
Brown, wearing a tan suit, gold-rimmed sunglasses and a St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap, signed autographs for fans as he left the courthouse.
Brown rose to stardom as a teenager in 2005 and won his first Grammy for best R&B album in 2011 for FAME. He earned his second in the same category for “11:11 (Deluxe)” in 2025.
The singer has faced repeated legal trouble since his felony conviction in the 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend singer Rihanna, hours before the pair were due to perform at the Grammys.
In 2013, Brown was charged with misdemeanour assault for striking a man outside a Washington, DC, hotel. He was later ordered into rehab and then dismissed from the facility for violating its rules.
The 37-year-old has also been arrested in several US states over altercations, and in 2019 he was arrested in Paris and questioned on suspicion of rape before being released without charge.
Grammy-winning singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty on Friday to brawling at a London nightclub in 2023, admitting to affray in a case in which prosecutors said he hit music producer Abraham Diaw on the head with a bottle.
The singer changed his plea during a hearing at Southwark Crown Court after previously denying more serious charges linked to what prosecutors described as a “vicious attack”, as reported by Associated Press.
Brown’s friend and vocal coach, Omololu Akinlolu, also pleaded guilty to affray. In return for his plea, prosecutors dropped charges of assault, attempting to cause grievous bodily harm, and possessing an offensive weapon, namely a bottle.
Brown and Akinlolu had been due to stand trial in October.
The case relates to an incident at the Tape nightclub in Mayfair in February 2023. Brown had denied attacking Diaw with a bottle, but prosecutors said the fight was captured on surveillance camera in front of a club full of people.
The affray charge accepted by the defendants says, "Chris Brown and Omololu Akinlolu on February 19, 2023 used or threatened unlawful violence towards another and their conduct taken together was such as would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his personal safety."
Claire Campbell, a senior prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service, after the guilty plea said, "This was a vicious and unprovoked attack by Brown and Akinlolu in a crowded nightclub where Brown used a glass bottle as a weapon to strike the victim’s head twice."
Prosecutors said Akinlolu then joined in and punched the victim in the head.
"This kind of violence is entirely unacceptable, and the Crown Prosecution Service will work tirelessly – with the police and partners across the criminal justice system – to pursue cases like this, and prove that no one is above the law," Campbell added.
Brown left the United Kingdom after the brawl, but was arrested in May 2025 at a Manchester hotel after flying to the city for a concert. He had been free on bail of 5 million pounds, which allowed him to tour Europe and North America last summer. He was freed on bail again on Friday and will be sentenced on October 26 on the affray charge, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
Brown, wearing a tan suit, gold-rimmed sunglasses and a St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap, signed autographs for fans as he left the courthouse.
Brown rose to stardom as a teenager in 2005 and won his first Grammy for best R&B album in 2011 for FAME. He earned his second in the same category for “11:11 (Deluxe)” in 2025.
The singer has faced repeated legal trouble since his felony conviction in the 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend singer Rihanna, hours before the pair were due to perform at the Grammys.
In 2013, Brown was charged with misdemeanour assault for striking a man outside a Washington, DC, hotel. He was later ordered into rehab and then dismissed from the facility for violating its rules.
The 37-year-old has also been arrested in several US states over altercations, and in 2019 he was arrested in Paris and questioned on suspicion of rape before being released without charge.
