NYPD: At Least 2 Members Of Cardi B's Entourage Sought For Assault After Met Gala
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The NYPD is seeking three men for an assault that took place outside a Manhattan hotel after the swanky Met Gala Monday night. At least two of them are allegedly rapper Cardi B's bodyguards.
The incident was partially caught on video obtained by TMZ.
Police say a man was trying to get an autograph from Cardi B after the party at around 2:15 a.m. outside the Mark Hotel on East 77th Street.
Cardi B, who is pregnant, can be seen telling him no.
"Oh come on, don't be like that mama," the man says on the video. "I just asked for an autograph, I'm an autograph hound."
An attorney identified the autograph seeker as Giovanni Arnold.
What happens next is unclear, but the video picks up with Arnold being pummeled by several people, and it ends with him getting stomped on the head.
"This was an unjustified ambush by rabid members of Offset and Cardi B.'s entourage," said attorney Daniel Szalkiewicz. "Our client was beaten to a pulp for requesting an autograph. Our client was held in the hospital overnight for observation. The videos clearly show this was not an act of self defense. The assailants fled the scene to avoid being arrested for their savage attack. There is no doubt in my mind the NYPD will be able to track these criminals down and bring them to justice. No fan should ever be treated in this manner and words never justify violence."
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The NYPD says they've seen the video.
"It shows an individual having a loud, boisterous I'll call it, conversation with the entourage of allegedly Cardi B," said NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea. "At some point, three individuals run over and physically assault this individual... the 19th precinct detective squad currently has that case and that is where we are at."
The trio ran away.
Arnold was hospitalized.
The NYPD says they want to interview everyone involved, including witnesses.
