Bebe Rexha.Photo:Gareth Cattermole/amfAR/Getty
Gareth Cattermole/amfAR/Getty
The man who threw a phone atBebe Rexha’s face during the pop star’s New York City concert over the weekend has told police he thought the action — which injured her — “would be funny.”
The New York District Attorney’s Office tells PEOPLE that after Rexha’s show at The Rooftop at Pier 17 in lower Manhattan on Sunday night, Nicolas Malvanga, 27, of New Jersey was arrested on several misdemeanor charges: two counts of third degree assault as well as second degree aggravated harassment, third degree attempted assault and second degree harassment.
According to the criminal complaint, Malvanga was taken into custody, admitted to throwing the phone and told police, “I was trying to see if I could hit her with the phone at the end of the show because it would be funny.”
Bebe Rexha.Bebe Rexha/Instagram
Bebe Rexha/Instagram
His next court date is July 31. The assailant’s lawyer, Todd Spodek, tells PEOPLE in a statement: “Nicolas, like many other fans, was hoping to interact in some way with Ms. Rexha as the phone was returned. It was never his intention to injure Ms. Rexha in any way.”
Rexhais in the middle of her Best F*n Night of My Live Tour to support her new albumBebe, and she’ll be going forward with a scheduled show in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening.
“Although the show ended in an unfortunate way it was still an amazing show in my hometown,” the Grammy nominee wrote onInstagramTuesday. “Thank you so Much New York. I love You. The Tour must go on!!!”
She added an Instagram Story showing how her injuries were looking, captioning it, “Still making a black eye sexy.”
Earlier this year, she previewed the tour — her first string of headlining shows in six years — in an interview withPEOPLE.
“It takes everybody on a journey of all my music,” she said in April. “What I’m excited for the most is feeling the fans' energy. There’s a different connection when you perform live with drums, guitar, bass, piano and dancers that really fulfills me.”
source: people.com
