Singer Chris Brown linked to battery incident at the Palms, police say

For the second time in about eight months, hip-hop singer Chris Brown is connected to a battery investigation at the Palms, according to Las Vegas police.

Officers were dispatched about 10:20 a.m. Saturday to the hotel-casino, 4321 W. Flamingo Road, Metro Lt. Jeff Goodwin said.

A woman "appeared to have minor injuries sustained as a result of battery," according to a Metro news release.

The woman was at a party in a hotel room when she tried to take a photo of Brown and a fight broke out because of it, the news release said. That's when Brown, she told officers, hit her and took her phone.

A verbal fight broke out as the woman was escorted out of the room by private security, Metro said. Hotel security kicked her out of the hotel due to the disturbance in the hallway.

She later returned to the hotel to report the incident, Metro said.

When Metro detectives arrived to investigate, they weren't let into Brown's hotel room. He had already left.

As of Saturday evening, police have not heard from Brown, Metro said.

The 26-year-old singer, whose full legal name is Chris Maurice Brown, is the listed suspect in a misdemeanor battery and misdemeanor theft police report, Metro said.

A representative for Brown called accusations "false" and "unequivocally untrue."

Nicole Perna, from BWR Public Relations, told the Review-Journal in an email statement that the woman was "escorted out of the private after party" for "disruptive and out of control" behavior.

The woman acted erratically and "had a total meltdown" in the hallway while she waited for Brown's private security to get her phone, Perna said.

Perna contends the claims of the assault are "a complete fabrication." "This seems like a clear case of retaliation for her bruised ego for being kicked out of the party,"she said.

Brown performed Friday at Drai's Beachclub and Nightclub inside the Cromwell, according to a club advertisement.

This isn't the first time Brown was linked to a battery investigation at the Palms. He had faced a charge last May after a man told Las Vegas police Brown had punched him following an argument during a pick-up basketball game.

Investigators had been called May 4 to Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center where the man was being treated for injuries he said were caused by Brown.

The investigation ended when the man decided not to pursue the case, police announced the next day.

Brown has a violent criminal record, which includes a 2009 conviction in Los Angeles County for assaulting singer Rihanna, who was his girlfriend at the time.

Review-Journal writers Kimberly De La Cruz and Lawren Linehan contributed.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Contact Ricardo Torres at rtorres@reviewjournal.com and 702-383-0381. Find him on Twitter: @rickytwrites.