Chris Brown: US singer given suspended eight-month prison sentence over nightclub attack

US singer Chris Brown has narrowly avoided incarceration following an incident where he struck a man twice on the head with a glass tequila bottle in a nightclub in London. The altercation took place at the private members’ club Tape, located in Mayfair, during the early hours of 19 February 2023. Brown was handed an eight-month prison sentence, but this was suspended for 12 months, meaning he will not serve time unless he commits another offense within that period.

Brown’s vocal coach, rapper Omololu Akinlolu, who was involved in the same incident, received a four-month prison sentence, also suspended for 12 months. Both men pleaded guilty to affray and were ordered to pay £1,500 in court costs. During sentencing, Judge Tony Baumgartner emphasized the dangerous nature of Brown’s actions, describing his use of the glass bottle to strike the victim as “plainly dangerous” and noting the “intense” violence of the attack.

The victim, music producer Abraham ‘Abe’ Diaw, required hospital treatment after the assault. CCTV footage presented in court showed Brown hitting Diaw four times with the bottle, twice to the head and once to the shoulder, in an attack lasting less than 20 seconds in a crowded nightclub. Judge Baumgartner highlighted that the violence was not premeditated but serious, warning that acts like these in a packed venue pose dangers not just to the victim but also to bystanders. He reminded Brown that his celebrity status and professional success did not exempt him from the law.

While Brown and Akinlolu faced more serious charges — including assault, attempting to cause grievous bodily harm, and possession of an offensive weapon — these charges were dropped after the pair pleaded guilty to affray. The Crown Prosecution Service outlined that Brown initiated the attack by striking Diaw with the bottle, with Akinlolu joining in by punching the victim. The court also heard that the assault continued as the victim tried to escape and that he was kicked while sitting on the floor. Despite the severity of the incident, legal changes this year meant that the court was required to suspend Brown and Akinlolu’s prison sentences rather than impose immediate incarceration, unless exceptional circumstances applied, which the judge did not find in this case

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