Person Who Approached Ariana Grande on the occasion of Movie Premiere Barred from Singapore
A man from Australia who vaulted across a fence and reached for actress Ariana Grande has been expelled and banned from Singapore.
Johnson Wen, 26, was sentenced to over a week in detention for being a public nuisance and has now been "barred from re-entering Singapore," Singaporean immigration authorities stated to Singaporean press.
Wen pushed through camera crews and rushed toward the performer and artist, who was present at the Asian premier for Wicked: For Good on the thirteenth of November. Co-performer Cynthia Erivo wrestled him away 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 this summer.
The incident sparked outrage in Singapore, with many accusing him of triggering past trauma for the singer.
The celebrity has mentioned dealing with trauma-related anxiety after a suicide bomb attack at her show in the UK city in spring of 2017 resulted in the deaths of over twenty people and injured hundreds.
During Wen's trial, the court heard he had attempted to intrude on the movie's debut on two occasions, according to Singaporean media.
He then made a another effort to breach security. Event security prevented him and held him in place.
He then uploaded videos expressing gratitude to the star for letting him on the carpet and said he was "at liberty."
Authorities took him into custody the following day and accused him with public nuisance, to which the man admitted guilt.
The Presiding Judge the magistrate was referenced by Channel News Asia as remarking that the man sought attention, commenting that he was wrong to believe he would not experience repercussions.
The actress has not spoken about the incident.
Erivo mentioned the situation to the press, remarking that she "only aimed to verify my co-star was protected."
"I believe he had no intention to us harm, but you can't predict with those things, and I wanted to ensure that she was fine. That was my immediate response," she commented.
