Kanye West sued for allegedly punching and disfiguring an autograph seeker
Kanye West is being sued for assault and battery over an alleged 2022 incident that left a man, Justin Poplawski disfigured.
According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Justin Poplawski is claiming West punched him repeatedly after he asked the rapper for an autograph.
The alleged victim claimed that on Jan. 13, 2022, he was waiting outside a hotel to get West’s autograph when the “Heartless” rapper went ballistic on him, allegedly shouting … “I’m going to make a f***ing example of you,” while referencing his divorce from Kim Kardashian, before hitting him.
He says he asked Ye for an apology, only for the rapper to reply, “Apology for what?” … before allegedly striking him again multiple times and “severely injuring him.”
He claims one of the people with Kanye told him to stop the attack, but Ye started shouting at them, and demanded they “go to the f***ing house and get my f***ing kids”.
The alleged victim is now seeking an unspecified amount of damages to cover the medical bills due to his alleged disfigurement, lost earnings and mental pain and suffering.
His wife is also suing for a loss of consortium, essentially saying she lost the companionship of her husband as a result of the incident with Ye.
Although the lawsuit was recently filed, the incident was initially investigated but the rapper was not charged after the LA City Attorney’s Office decided there was “no reasonable likelihood of conviction.”
Although there was no video of the alleged assault, TMZ later obtained footage of the moments after the incident, which showed the Yeezy CEO shouting while an unidentified male lay on the ground.
Meanwhile, the person capturing the ordeal seemed in shock and could be heard asking, “Why did he just do that?”
West later shared his side of the story in an interview with Jason Lee for “Hollywood Unlocked,” explaining that Poplawski “wasn’t a fan” but rather someone “taking autographs to make money on them.”
“It was 3 a.m. in front of the warehouse,” West recalled. “And this dude just, he just had this real attitude, like, ‘Whatchu gonna do? And see that?’ Imma just tell you, that blue COVID mask ain’t stop that knockout, you know what I’m saying.”
When Lee asked whether it was the man’s “taunting, the disrespect, [or] the disregard for your privacy” that set him off, West replied, “It’s all of that, but that’s what Hollywood be.”
He then explained that he was also upset over a parenting disagreement with ex Kim Kardashian at the time, which “added to [him] being in a mood where [he] was like, ‘I am not going to have this.’”
However, West never admitted to striking Poplawski.
By Ezinne Joy Okorie
