Justin Bieber Punched? Bodyguards Caught Up In Dominican Republic Nightclub Scuffle
Video footage showing Justin Bieber’s bodyguards involved in a brawl inside a Dominican Republic nightclub has surfaced online.
Some reports claim the teen star was punched in the jaw during the incident, but that hasn’t been confirmed and the singer has since tweeted about how “people exaggerate things.”
After arriving on the island of Hispaniola (after leaving Puerto Rico where he performed at a Saturday Believe tour concert), Bieber reportedly attended a celebration for Tueska — a Colombian singer — at the Jet Set club in Santo Domingo on Monday (Oct. 21), before the evening turned sour.
Details on the incident are scant, but the footage shows Justin — seen wearing a baseball cap and with his back to the camera — surrounded by his bodyguards while they wave flashlights.
The clip appears to show Bieber’s security pushing back a group of clubgoers as they crowded behind the singer, attempting to take photos with their phones.
From there, the situation appears to quickly escalate as individuals are seen either being shoved, or getting involved in the melee in some way.
One man is seen being forcibly held back by his companions.
The sound of a female screaming can be heard in the video and the immediate area around the incident revealed upended chairs.
According to a witness, Justin’s security team faced off with some fans in the club and it flared into a fight. The witness said no-one was injured, HipHollywood Watch reports.
An unconfirmed source told MediaTakeOut that one of Bieber’s bodyguards was trying to clear a path in the club for the pop star and began pushing people out of the way. However, the veracity of that report is questionable and the video appears to show photo taking as the issue.
The same outlet claims several drunk, male bystanders attempted to take on the bodyguard, which led to a huge brawl that nearly “destroyed the club.”
It’s alleged one of these men punched Justin in the jaw, but that is not seen in the clip.
Bieber is not seen fighting in the video, and it’s claimed he was quickly taken out of the club after the alleged punch and driven to his hotel.
This is not the first time the singer’s security has been accused of heavy-handed behavior.
Numerous alleged incidents, including altercations between the Canadian’s bodyguards and paparazzo in Miami in June, an accusation by a deejay that Bieber spat at him in a nightclub in Ohio in July, a brawl at a Hamptons, New York nightclub in August, a random attack on the singer by a clubber in a Toronto club in September, and a reported row between Justin and a British DJ in a South Korean nightclub this month, are among a laundry list of fraught 2013 incidents.
That said, details on this latest drama are unclear and it’s possible the bodyguards’ actions, which are only partially seen in the clip, were affected by other out-of-shot factors.
Photos of Bieber over the next few days should also reveal whether he was punched.
The singer’s wry tweet earlier today suggests he wasn’t.
Love how people exaggerate things. This is what the #BelieveMovie is all about. I’m loving DR. Show day today. See everyone soon
— Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) October 22, 2013
If, and as, the story develops, we will keep you updated.
Bieber is due to perform at the 60,000 capacity Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez stadium in Santo Domingo tonight (Oct. 22).
[Image via Yahoo]