The man who left Bebe Rexha needing three stitches on her face has come up with an eyebrow-raising excuse for his behaviour. The pop star had to be rushed offstage during a concert on Sunday night after Nicholas Malvagna, 27, hurled his phone straight at her. Rexha, who was performing in New York for her ‘Best F'n Night of My Life’ tour, was filmed dropping to her knees in agony as the device struck her in the eye. But Malvagna insists he hadn’t intended to hurt the singer-songwriter and that he’d merely been trying to make his mark as part of a viral trend. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter “It’s a TikTok trend where you throw your phone onto the stage, and a celebrity passes it and takes a selfie,'” the 27-year-old told arresting officers, according to Manhattan prosecutor Stephan Millan. “‘I thought she was looking in my direction,” he added. “I was about two rows back, but instead of my phone landing right next to her, my phone hit her in the face.” His lawyer, Todd Spodek, reiterated the claim in a statement, saying: “As a fan, Mr. Malvagna’s sole intention was to have Ms. Rexha take photos with his phone and return it as a keepsake. It was never his intention to injure Ms. Rehxa.” However, this justification runs contrary to a criminal complaint that was filed at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. It claims that when Malvagna was asked by officers at the scene who had thrown the phone, he replied: "I did. I was trying to see if I could hit her with the phone at the end of the show because it would be funny". Suffice it to say, fellow fans failed to see the “funny” side, and Rexha ended up in stitches of a very different kind. The 33-year-old ‘I’m Good (Blue)’ singer, reassured her 11 million Instagram followers that she was, indeed, all good in the wake of the incident, despite being left black and blue. She posted two photos in the wake of the incident, showing her left eye looking purple and swollen, and a cut running across her eyebrow, as she smiled stoically through the pain. Malvagna, who is from New Jersey, is facing two counts of assault, one count of harassment, one count of aggravated harassment, and one count of attempted assault. He was freed without bail on Tuesday ahead of a 31 July court date and has been banned from making any contact with Rexha. Prosecutor Millan told Judge Valentina Morales: “Although the parties appear to be strangers, the defendant’s actions are serious. “The defendant was attending the victim’s concert. He decided it would be funny to throw his phone at her while she was performing. The phone struck her in the face which caused her swelling, redness and a laceration to her face. “For these reasons, we believe a full and temporary order of protection at this time.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Kanye West and his rumoured wife Bianca Censori have been banned from a Venice boat company for life following their antics last month. West, who legally changed his name to Ye in 2021, was spotted on board the water taxi last month with his bare bottom exposed. Censori seemingly rested her head on his lap. Venezia Turismo Motoscafi has since revealed the couple will "no longer be welcome" on any of their boats. In a statement, the company said staff were "completely unaware" West had dropped his pants, as they were focusing on water traffic. "The driver had to keep a lookout for traffic and did not see these obscenities," they said. "If this had happened, he would have immediately disembarked and reported the transgressors to those in authority." They also went on to call out a "third person on board the taxi" who "obstructed the captain’s view" towards the back of the boat. It wasn't just the antics on board that caused a storm during their Italian getaway. Many people called out Censori's "offensive" outfits, some calling for her to be arrested for "public indecency". "I wish the police would arrest these two for their ignorant behaviour. They are making a mockery of the country," one furious X/Twitter user wrote, while another added: "Why won't the Italian government police or someone stop them?" Tourism website CIU Travel claims: "Walking around in beach attire or, worse, shirtless, is a huge no-no in Italy, unless you have your feet buried deep in the sand." Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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