One Direction Singer Arrested After LAX Altercation, Police Say

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) – One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson was arrested on suspicion of simple battery overnight Friday after police say he pulled a photographer to the floor at Los Angeles International Airport.

Tomlinson, 25, was booked at the Los Angeles Police Department's Pacific Division at 11:45 p.m. Friday on misdemeanor charges. He was released on his own recognizance at 1:32 a.m. Saturday, according to LAPD. He is scheduled to appear in Los Angeles Superior Court on March 29.

Airport police were dispatched to the Terminal 4 baggage claim at 8:25 p.m. Friday on a report of a disturbance, LAX police officer Alicia Hernandez said in a news release.

"Upon arrival, a police investigation revealed that suspect Tomlinson, of England, traveling with a female companion, was involved in a physical altercation with a photographer," Hernandez said. "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."

The photographer was taken to an area hospital, where his condition was not immediately known, she said.

A female witness began to video record Tomlinson's companion as she attempted to leave. A fight then broke out between the singer's companion and the female witness, Hernandez said.

Tomlinson allegedly tried to take the woman's cell phone by grabbing her wrist, causing her to fall to the floor. During the altercation, the woman was struck in the eye, Hernandez said.

"The female witness and the photographer both filed Private Persons Arrest statements," she said. "The photographer was transported to a local hospital for treatment. The female witness was treated on scene and released."

Tomlinson's lawyer Martin Singer said in a statement to the Associated Press that the paparazzi "provoked and caused the altercation" and that Tomlinson came to his girlfriend's defense after she was being "attacked."

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