Man Who Grabbed Ariana Grande on the occasion of Movie Premiere Banned from Singapore
An Australian man who jumped past a barrier and reached for Hollywood star Ariana Grande has been deported and prohibited from Singapore.
Johnson Wen, twenty-six, was given a sentence to over a week in prison for disrupting public order and has now been "prohibited from returning to Singapore," the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority informed Singaporean press.
He forced his way past photographers and charged at the actress and singer, who was present at the regional launch for the musical adaptation on November 13. Co-star Cynthia Erivo pulled him back from Grande.
He has a background of disrupting concerts and celebrity events, including rushing the stage at a Katy Perry performance in Sydney in June this year.
The event provoked strong reactions in Singapore, with numerous people accusing him of triggering past trauma for the singer.
The pop star has discussed experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder after a explosive incident at her concert in the English city in May 2017 killed 22 individuals and injured hundreds.
During Wen's trial, the judge was informed he had tried to gain access on the red carpet event on two occasions, according to Singaporean media.
He then made a second attempt to breach security. Security staff intercepted him and restrained him.
The man subsequently shared recordings expressing gratitude to the star for allowing his presence and said he was "released."
Police took him into custody the subsequent day and brought charges against him with causing a disturbance, to which he confessed.
The District Judge the judicial official was referenced by a news outlet as saying that Wen was "attention seeking", adding that he was wrong to assume he would not experience repercussions.
The actress has not addressed the situation.
The co-star spoke about the incident to NBC, remarking that she "just wanted to make sure my colleague was safe."
"I believe he didn't mean us danger, but you never know with those things, and I wanted to make sure that she was fine. That was my immediate response," she said.