Chris Brown denied bail after 'bottle attack' while awaiting London court date

Chris Brown has been arrested for a 2023 incident in a London nightclub (Picture: Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images)

R&B singer Chris Brown, 36, has been remanded in custody until June 13 by a judge in Manchester over an allegation of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

He appeared in Manchester Magistrates’ Court this morning, where the decision was made.

Brown was charged with grievous bodily harm with intent after he was arrested in the early hours of Thursday morning at a five-star hotel in Manchester.

Police arrested Brown on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm to music producer Abe Diaw at Tape nightclub in Mayfair, Central London, in February 2023.

The American R&B star was arrested just after 2am at the Lowry Hotel, and it was later confirmed that he was charged.

Brown arrived in the dock wearing Nike tracksuit bottoms and a plain black t-shirt with bleach blond hair, alongside two security guards. 

The singer is being held in custody before his June hearing in London (Picture: CLICK NEWS AND MEDIA)

He was arrested after touching down in Manchester (Picture: CLICK NEWS AND MEDIA)

The star is scheduled to kick off his UK tour on June 15 in Manchester (Picture: Aaron J. Thornton/WireImage)

Brown spoke to give his name as Christopher Maurice Brown and confirmed his date of birth as May 5, 1989.

When asked for his current address, he responded: ‘The Lowry Hotel’.

The Judge said the case will be heard at Southwark Crown Court in London, with the next hearing to be held on June 13 at 10am, as GBH is ‘too serious’ of an offence to be dealt with at the magistrates’ court.

Prosecutor Hannah Nicholls outlined the accusations against Brown, saying the ‘circumstances of the offence are extremely serious’ and that the attack was captured on CCTV and carried out in a club ‘full of people’.

Nicholls said Brown struck Diaw ‘several times’ before chasing him across the bar then punching and kicking him alongside another person.

A bail application followed from Brown’s barrister Grace Forbes, which was denied.

Brown confirmed to Judge Hirst that he understood he had further been remanded in custody until next month.

The singer nodded to an associate in the front row of the court’s public gallery as he was led from the dock following the 30-minute hearing.

There were too many members of the press and public to fit into one court, so the proceedings were also shown via video link in court 14.

Adele Kelly, the Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS London North, previously said: ‘We have authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge Chris Brown with one count of grievous bodily harm, contrary to section 18 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861.

‘The alleged incident occurred in London on 19 February 2023.

Brown will appear in a London court in June (Picture: Marcus Ingram/Getty Images)

‘He will have his first court appearance on Friday 16 May at Manchester Magistrates’ Court.

‘The Crown Prosecution Service reminds all concerned that criminal proceedings against this defendant are active and that he has the right to a fair trial.

‘It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.’

Brown flew into Manchester Airport on a private jet on Wednesday afternoon, possibly to begin rehearsals for his tour, which kicks off its UK leg on June 15 in Manchester.

The Sun contacted police following confirmation that Brown was in the country, asking if he would be placed under arrest for the incident.

Met detectives then travelled to Manchester to arrest the two-time Grammy winner after receiving the tip.

Diaw alleges Brown attacked him unprovoked at around 3am on the night in question. Brown and his entourage were attending a Dirty Martini club night held at Tape nightclub.

Diaw claims Brown broke a bottle over his head and then punched and kicked him after he fell to the ground, sustaining injuries that led him to be taken to hospital.

Diaw has launched a civil claim against Brown for $16million (£12m) in damages for injuries and losses suffered as a result of the alleged attack.

The Met Police told Metro: ‘A 36-year-old man was arrested at a hotel in Manchester shortly after 02:00hrs on Thursday, 15 May on suspicion of grievous bodily harm.

‘He has been taken into custody where he remains.

‘The arrest relates to an incident at a venue in Hanover Square on 19 February 2023.

The singer first rose to fame in 2005 (Picture: NBC/Getty)

Brown was in London for his 11:11 tour at the time of the alleged incident (Picture: Aaron J. Thornton/WireImage)

‘The investigation is being led by detectives from the Central West Area Basic Command Unit.’

The future of Brown’s Breezy Bowl XX Tour – a celebration of his 20-year career – now appears uncertain. The singer is set to kick off the tour on June 8 in Amsterdam, before moving to the UK.

Opener Bryson Tiller will join him in Europe and the UK, with dates in Glasgow, Manchester, Cardiff, London, and Birmingham.

When announcing the tour on Instagram in March, Brown wrote: ‘CELEBRATING 20 years of CB. So excited to be able to share this moment with the world and my amazing fans..

‘I CANT WAIT TO SEE ALL YALLS BEAUTIFUL FACES. IMA TAKE YALL THREW THESE ERAS BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY GIVE YALL MY HEART AND SOUL.’

The tour is a follow-up to his hit 11:11 tour in 2024, which generated $82.3million (£64m) and sold 446,000 tickets.

Metro has reached out to Chris Brown’s reps for comment.

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