One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson arrested in airport tussle

One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson has been arrested over LAX paparazzi ‘altercation’on March 4. 2017. Bryan Steffy / AFP

One Direction heart-throb Louis Tomlinson has been released on bail following his arrest related to an airport brawl with paparazzi that left two people injured.

According to the authorities, the 25-year-old Briton was in the baggage claim at Los Angeles International Airport with his girlfriend, Eleanor Calder, on Friday evening when he got involved in a tussle with a photographer.

“Witnesses stated that Tomlinson pulled the photographer to the floor by his legs causing the victim to fall backwards and strike his back and head on the floor,” says airport police spokeswoman Officer Alicia Hernandez.

Tomlinson then also allegedly caused a woman in the area to fall when he grabbed her phone as she tried to record footage of the singer’s companion, Hernandez said.

The photographer was taken to a hospital but the extent of his injuries was not clear. The woman with the cell phone hurt her eye but was treated on site, Hernandez said.

Tomlinson was taken into custody and released early Saturday morning after posting $20,000 (Dh73,450) bond, a sheriff’s department database showed.

He was ordered to appear before a court on March 29 to hear potential charges. He was arrested on allegation of simple battery, a misdemeanour that usually is settled by a fine.

Tomlinson, who has sold more than 50 million records as part of popular boy band One Direction, has been a favourite of the gossip pages.

He had a son last year with Briana Jungwirth, a Los Angeles stylist whom he briefly dated. The two were said to remain friends as they raised the child.

One Direction, once known for a squeaky-clean image that drew massive crowds of teenage girls, has been on hiatus since late 2015, with former member Zayn Malik pursuing the most active solo career.

Tomlinson has been working with Simon Cowell — the judge of The X Factor show that launched One Direction — on putting together an all-girl pop band.

*Agence France Press