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FISHKILL, N.Y. — Police are looking into a clash between Akon and a concertgoer that ended with the R&B star tossing the teen off the stage and onto another spectator who said she suffered a concussion.
Audience members said the trouble started when a spectator lobbed something at Akon during a concert Sunday at Dutchess Stadium and the 34-year-old singer asked the crowd to point out the culprit. A security guard picked out a 15-year-old and sent him up to the stage, where Akon hoisted him onto his shoulders and flung him back into the audience, The Poughkeepsie Journal reported Thursday.
The boy landed on Abby Rosa, who told the newspaper she quickly felt a headache and blurry vision and was later diagnosed with a concussion. She said she has hired a lawyer and spoke to Fishkill police about the incident, and that she wants an apology from Akon.
Fishkill Police Detective Lt. John Berlingieri said no criminal charges had been filed against Akon. And the singer’s attorney, Benjamin Brafman, released a statement saying there was no basis for criminal charges.
But Berlingieri said police want to talk to the teen, whose name has not been released. A Fishkill town official told the newspaper the boy was not hurt and left the stadium after declining medical treatment.
Sunday’s scuffle wasn’t the first concert controversy for the platinum-selling Akon. Earlier this year, the singer did a sexually explicit onstage dance with a girl from the audience who was later revealed to be 14.
Akon apologized and said he didn’t know the girl was underage, saying the April 12 concert in Trinidad was supposed to have been restricted to fans 18 and older.
His latest album, “Konvicted,” has sold more than 1 million copies in the United States. Akon’s hits include “Don’t Matter,” “I Wanna Love You” with Snoop Dogg and “Smack That” with Eminem.
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