Person Who Reached For Ariana Grande during Movie Premiere Banned from Singapore
A man from Australia who vaulted past a barrier and touched celebrity Ariana Grande has been expelled and banned from Singapore.
Johnson Wen, twenty-six, was sentenced to more than a week in detention for disrupting public order and has now been "banned from entering the country again," the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority stated to Singaporean press.
The man shoved through camera crews and charged at the performer and artist, who was participating in the regional launch for Wicked: For Good on November 13. Co-performer Cynthia Erivo intervened to remove him from Grande.
He has a background of disrupting concerts and high-profile gatherings, including rushing the stage at the pop star's Australian show in June this year.
The incident provoked strong reactions in Singapore, with several individuals claiming he of triggering past trauma for the singer.
The singer has spoken of experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder after a suicide bomb attack at her concert in the UK city in May 2017 resulted in the deaths of 22 individuals and injured hundreds.
In the legal process, the court heard he had attempted to intrude on the movie's debut twice, according to local news sources.
He then made a second attempt to breach security. Security staff intercepted him and held him in place.
He then uploaded video clips thanking Grande for permitting his access and said he was "free."
Law enforcement arrested him the next day and brought charges against him with public nuisance, to which Wen pleaded guilty.
The Court Judge Christopher Goh was cited by a news outlet as saying that he was looking for publicity, commenting that he was wrong to think he would not suffer any consequences.
The actress has not commented on the situation.
The co-star discussed the event to the press, stating that she "just wanted to verify my friend was secure."
"I believe he didn't intend us harm, but you never know with these incidents, and I aimed to ensure that she was fine. That was my first instinct," she commented.
