American R&B singer Chris Brown has pleaded guilty to affray over a 2023 attack at a London nightclub, ending the prospect of a trial on more serious charges.
Brown, 37, entered the plea on Friday, July 24, 2026, at Southwark Crown Court. His vocal coach, Omololu Akinlolu, 40, also pleaded guilty to affray.
The case arose from an incident at Tape London, a private members’ club in Hanover Square, central London, in the early hours of February 19, 2023.
Prosecutors alleged that Brown approached music producer Abraham Diaw on the dance floor and struck him twice over the head with a glass bottle. Akinlolu then joined the attack, and Diaw was allegedly punched and kicked as he tried to escape.
Diaw later received treatment at St Mary’s Hospital for head and knee injuries.
Police later discovered that Brown and Akinlolu had left the UK, leading to warrants being issued for their arrest. Brown returned to Britain more than two years later for a concert in Manchester and was arrested at a luxury hotel on May 15, 2025.
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He had previously pleaded not guilty to more serious charges, including attempting to cause grievous bodily harm with intent, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon.
Those charges will not proceed following his guilty plea to affray, which involves the use or threat of unlawful violence capable of causing a person of reasonable firmness to fear for their safety.
Brown and Akinlolu are due to be sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on October 26, 2026.
The conviction adds to Brown’s long history of legal troubles. In 2009, he pleaded guilty to one felony count of assault involving his then-girlfriend, singer Rihanna, following an incident on the eve of the Grammy Awards.
He was sentenced to five years’ probation, six months of community labour and one year of domestic-violence counseling. His probation ended in 2015.
Brown, who rose to global fame with hits including Yo (Excuse Me Miss) and With You, remains a major force in contemporary R&B, despite a career repeatedly overshadowed by legal controversies.