Nick Gordon, the ex-boyfriend of Bobbi Kristina Brown, was arrested early Saturday in Florida on domestic violence charges.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that the Seminole Country Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to calls about a possible domestic disturbance at around 1 a.m on Saturday.
An arrest report says that his live-in girlfriend, Laura Leal, told officers that she’d picked up Gordon from a Sanford bar and that he began to strike her on the right side of her cheek several times.
READ MORE: Nick Gordon, Bobbi Kristina Brown’s ex, arrested for allegedly beating his girlfriend
“I didn’t hit her,” Gordon told deputies. “She attacked me and ripped my shirt. She also threw a bottle at me. I just want her to leave my house.”
She refused to press charges, but deputies took Gordon into custody based on her statement and physical evidence.
According to the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, Gordon was arrested on one charge of “battery — touch or strike.” After posting US$500 in bail, Gordon will appear in court on April 6.
The arrest marked the second time in the past year that police have charged Gordon with domestic violence. In both incidents, the victim was Gordon’s current girlfriend.
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In early June 2017, Gordon and girlfriend Leal “became physical and lasted through the night,” with Gordon “hitting and punching her in the face and the back of the head with a closed fist.”
Gordon denied hitting her. He told police he was the one being abused. However, after officers observed Leal’s injuries they advised her to seek treatment and arrested Gordon.
According to the report, the couple’s fight began after the two watched the NBA playoff game on a Friday night at a sports bar. When the couple got home, Gordon got upset because he thought Leal was trying to hook up with one of his friends, the report stated.
Leal told police that Gordon smashed her phone and hid her laptop so she couldn’t call for help. Eventually, she ran into the bedroom of Gordon’s mother and the police were called.
She refused to cooperate with police and the June 2017 charges were dropped.
READ MORE: Nick Gordon ordered to pay Bobbi Kristina Brown’s family $36M in wrongful-death case
Brown, the daughter of singers Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, was found unresponsive in a bathtub in 2015. She died after six months in a coma.
Gordon was found responsible in a wrongful death lawsuit. An Atlanta judge ordered him to pay US$36 million to Brown’s estate.
Bobby Brown and his lawyer Christopher Brown offered their support to Leal through the Bobbi Kristina Serenity House, a nonprofit organization founded after the 2015 death of Bobbi Kristina Brown.
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“Domestic violence killed my daughter, and on March 4, 2018, the Bobbi Kristina Brown Serenity House held our first event to strike back at domestic violence,” the former New Edition member, 49, said in a statement on March 11.
“I personally would like to extend my hand to Ms. Leal and offer her services through our organization. I do not want to see any more families destroyed at the hands of domestic violence and I do not want any more women to suffer like my daughter did. We are here to assist and we hope to hear from Ms. Leal.”
Brown’s lawyer Christopher added: “We have been informed that Nick Gordon was arrested for domestic violence of Laura Leal in Florida yesterday. We would like to speak with Ms. Leal and offer her services through the Bobbi Kristina Brown Serenity House, a not-for-profit organization designed to assist women who have been victims of domestic violence.”
—With files from the Associated Press