LOS ANGELES (AP) – Chris Brown can’t avoid trouble.
Following a bizarre, hours-long stand-off with police, the “No Air” and “Kiss Kiss” singer was arrested Tuesday afternoon on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon after a woman called for help from a gathering at his home.
The arrest, which occurred outside the view of several news helicopters that swirled overhead and throngs of camera crews gathered at the bottom of Brown’s hilltop estate, marked the conclusion of nearly 14-hour-long stand-off and investigation by police.
Los Angeles police spokesman Lt. Chris Ramirez said officers first responded to Brown’s property in the Tarzana neighborhood of Los Angeles around 3 a.m. He did not identify the woman, elaborate on the assistance she needed or know if she was injured.
However, model Baylee Curran told the Los Angeles Times that Brown pointed a gun at her face. She said Brown and another man became angry with her when she admired the man’s diamond necklace. Curran said she and her friend ran outside as one of Brown’s associates gave chase and hid under a neighbor’s SUV.
The model, who hasn’t responded to requests for comment from The Associated Press, also told TMZ she’s visited Brown’s home in the past and never encountered any trouble.
Brown later posted rambling messages on social media Tuesday morning proclaiming his innocence and rebuffing reports that he barricaded himself in his “palace.”
“Y’all gonna stop playing with me like I’m the villain out here, like I’m going crazy,” he said in one Instagram video, waving a cigarette and looking at the camera. “When you get the warrant or whatever you need to do, you’re going to walk right up in here and you’re going to see nothing. You idiots.”
Apparently, the police saw something.
Brown’s attorney, Mark Geragos, arrived at the house before police served a search warrant around 1 p.m. Geragos, who has not responded to AP’s request for comment, stayed on the property until about 5 p.m. when Brown was transported for booking downtown.
The stand-off and subsequent media attention provided a chaotic scene in the balmy and typically quiet neighborhood of Tarzana as police closed off nearby streets and rerouted traffic.
Throughout the afternoon, several of Brown’s associates descended to the street below Brown’s estate. They declined to identify themselves or answer questions from the media about what occurred. In some instances, the men were belligerent, flashing obscene hand gestures and grabbing recording equipment.
The incident is the latest in a series of missteps for Brown, who has been in repeated legal trouble since his felony conviction in the 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend, Rihanna, ahead of the Grammys. Last year, he completed his probation in that case last.
