A court in Singapore has sentenced an Australian man to nine days in prison for grabbing Hollywood star Ariana Grande at a movie premiere.
Johnson Wen, 26, was found guilty of being a public nuisance over the high-profile incident last Thursday at the Asia premiere for Wicked: For Good.
Videos posted on social media show Wen jumping the barriers, charging at a visibly shocked Grande and grabbing her shoulders while jumping up and down.
The incident sparked outrage in Singapore, where many called for the arrest and deportation of Wen, who has a history of disrupting concerts and celebrity events.
Several accused him of “re-traumatising” Grande. The pop star turned actress has spoken of experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder after a suicide bomb attack at her May 2017 concert in Manchester, killing 22 people and injuring hundreds.
In Wen’s trial on Monday, the court heard he had attempted to intrude on the movie premiere twice, Singaporean media reports.
Moments after he grabbed Grande, her co-star Cynthia Erivo forcibly pried him off and security staff escorted him out.
He then made a second attempt to jump the barricades. Security staff stopped him and this time pinned him down.
Police in Singapore arrested him the next day and charged him with public nuisance. Wen pleaded guilty.
Prosecutors sought a week’s jail for Wen, arguing that he was a “serial intruder” who publicised his behaviour to gain popularity online.
