The singer said that she is “still a huge fan” of the San Antonio Spurs player after the incident with his security team last week
Britney Spears is continuing to speak out after alleging that she was slapped by a member of the San Antonio Spurs’ security team during an encounter with player Victor Wembanyama.
Shortly after TMZ posted a video of the incident and after the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) determined that no one will be charged, the singer, 41, shared a second post on Instagram reacting to what went down.
Noting that she has “been working in the industry for years and have been with some of the most famous people in the world,” Spears then pointed to *NSYNC, who she said “at one point were like The Beatles … girls would throw themselves at them everywhere we went.
“Not one time in my life has a security guard ever hit another person,” she wrote.
Spears continued, “I’m not sharing this to be a victim … I SIMPLY GET IT HONESTLY … my reaction was priceless … BAD ??? YES … “I’ve had documentaries done about me and none of which I approved … I have felt helpless in most situations and my experience in Vegas and my reaction was a cry out on all levels … I will say it.”
The singer then wrote that she felt as though she has never “been treated as an equal person in this country” and applauded those who helped her during the incident.
“When I watched the video myself … the people who actually swarmed around me when they heard me get hit made me feel like I mattered !!!” she said.
“I wasn’t aware of that at the time … all people could hear was me saying f— you all … which was WAY BETTER THAN HITTING HIM BACK!!!” the “Toxic” singer added.
Spears then concluded her post’s caption writing that she is “still a huge fan” of Wembanyama, 19, noting, “It’s not his fault his security hit me … s— happens !!!”
On Thursday, Spears filed a police report after she was allegedly slapped by one of Wembanyama’s security guards the prior evening. The LVMPD confirmed to that “officers responded” to the location “regarding a battery investigation” around 11 p.m. on Wednesday.
The police department then told in a statement Friday that the organization “concluded its investigation of the alleged battery that occurred on July 5, 2023, at 11 p.m., in the 3700 block of Las Vegas Boulevard.”
“No charges will be filed against the person involved,” continued the LVMPD.
A redacted police report obtained by claims that after reviewing video surveillance from the ARIA hotel, the Spurs’ security guard took “his left hand to push Britney’s hand away from the individual. [He] used enough force when pushing Britney’s hand away that it caused her hand to hit her face, causing her sunglasses to fall off.”
Wembanyama spoke out about the situation on Thursday in a video shared by KENS reporter Nate Ryan on Twitter. “Something did happen a little bit when I was walking with some security of the team to some restaurant. We were in a hall and there was a lot of people so people were calling me obviously,” he said.
The basketball star recalled hearing “one person” call his name repeatedly, but did not stop after being told by security that stopping would make a large crowd form.
“That person grabbed me from behind,” he continued. “I didn’t see what happened because I was walking straight and they told me ‘Don’t stop.’ But that person grabbed me from behind, grabbed on my shoulder. She grabbed me from behind so I just know that the security pushed her away.”
The athlete added, “I don’t know with how much force but security pushed her away. I didn’t stop to look so I kept walking and enjoyed a nice dinner.” When asked whether he knew if the person that was trying to get his attention was the famous musician, he explained that he “didn’t know for a couple of hours.”
When Wembanyama returned to the hotel, he thought the incident was “no big deal.” When security told him the person was Spears, he thought they were joking. “First I was like ‘No, you’re joking.’ But yea it turns out it was Britney Spears,” he said. “I didn’t know because I didn’t see her. I never saw her face. I just kept walking straight.”
Following his public statement, Spears posted on her social media accounts to address the situation as a “traumatic experience” and expressed that she has yet to receive an apology from the basketball player, his team or his security.
“I recognized an athlete in my hotel lobby as I was heading to dinner,” she recalled. “I later went to a restaurant at a different hotel and saw him again. I decided to approach him and congratulate him on his success.”
“It was really loud, so I tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention,” Spears claimed. “I am aware of the player’s statement where he mentions ‘I grabbed him from behind’ but I simply tapped him on the shoulder. His security then back-handed me in the face without looking back in front of a crowd, nearly knocking me down and causing my glasses [to fall] off my face.”