NBA star Scottie Pippen, 47, was sued Thursday for alleged assault and battery by a man who claims he was spit at, punched and kicked by the basketball player outside famous restaurant Nobu, in Malibu in June.
Camran Shafighi, 49 is now suing Pippen for $4 million and said he simply asked the athlete for a picture and autograph for his girlfriend's 12-year-old son.
"Instead of a photograph for the boy, Mr. Shafighi received from Pippin ... a verbal assault, a spit in the face, followed immediately by a physical beating consisting of a shove, then a violent punch to the face and head that felled Mr. Shafighi to the ground," reads the lawsuit.
"At no time did or could Mr. Shafighi physically provoke or fight back, as he was knocked unconscious with the first blow," the lawsuit continued.
The former Chicago Bull voluntarily reported to the Lost Hills Sheriff's Department for questioning following the June 23 incident. No arrest was made or charges filed, but authorities said at the time that the investigation was ongoing.
"He came in and was very cooperative and answered a lot of questions," L.A. County Sheriff's Department Capt. Pat Davoren said. "Our detectives have to do further investigating, mainly talking to other witnesses."
Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said witnesses told deputies that the other man in the altercation with Pippen, whom he did not identify, appeared to be intoxicated.
Camran Shafighi, who owns a luxury car business, suffers from headaches, nausea, breathing difficulties and other ongoing medical issues as a result of the altercation with Pippen, said his attorney Lee Boyd.
She said the suit is an effort to compensate the Malibu area resident for those problems in addition to economic losses because he is unable to run his business.
"This has been pretty devastating to him," Boyd said in an interview Thursday. "This was not the result of some drunken barroom brawl. This is a guy who wanted to take a picture with a cellphone."
"'Sources close to Mr. Pippen have suggested that our client used a racial slur prior to this attack. This claim is simply not true," Boyd added.
Pippen is reportedly considering a counter claim against the autograph-seeker for assault and making a false police report.
© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
