Nicki Minaj's team have slammed an assault and battery lawsuit brought by an ex-assistant as "false and frivolous".
In a complaint filed Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, Brandon Garrett claims he was working as a day-to-day manager during her Pink Friday 2 tour when Minaj hit him multiple times, according to TMZ.
Garrett alleges the incident occurred backstage after the Anaconda rapper's concert at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on 21 April.
Minaj's lawyer, Judd Burstein, gave a statement to Variety denying the allegations vehemently.
"At this time, no complaint has been served upon Mrs. Petty (Minaj's married name), and therefore, we are unaware of the specific allegations," he writes. "However, if the lawsuit is as reported by TMZ, it is completely false and frivolous. We are confident that the matter brought by this ex assistant will be resolved swiftly in Mrs. Petty's favor."
According to the lawsuit, Garrett was on his way back from an errand when he received a text message from her head of security, Larry Dathan, stating Minaj wanted to see him in her dressing room. He alleges eight members of Minaj's staff were present including Dathan, and another employee named Luke Montgomery.
The ex-assistant claims the rap superstar began to complain about her staff not knowing their roles, before criticising Garrett for having Montgomery pick up her prescriptions rather than going himself. He alleges she then "angrily screamed" at him, then "started yelling" at Montgomery and him for having information on the prescriptions to hand.
The complaint continues: "At this point, (Minaj) open-handedly struck (Garrett) on the right side of his face, causing his head to swing backwards as his hat flew off his head."
He also alleges that the Starships musician hit him on his right wrist, leaving it in a "throbbing" condition, and that he was ordered out of the room then off the tour. In his lawsuit Garrett is asking for punitive and exemplary damages and general damages.
