July 19, 2006

Complaint Against Eminem Dropped By Alleged Strip-Club Assault Victim

By Chris Harris (MTV.com)

A man who told police late last week that he was assaulted by rapper Eminem during an altercation inside the men's bathroom of a Detroit strip club has withdrawn his complaint.

A Detroit Police Department spokesperson said Monday (July 17) that the alleged victim -- who first contacted police with his indictment Thursday morning -- withdrew his complaint against the rapper over the weekend, ending a brief police investigation into the matter.

The spokesperson did not reveal the reasoning behind the alleged victim's reversal.

Police had said on Friday that detectives were "very interested" in speaking with Eminem and anyone else involved about the alleged incident - which the victim had claimed unfolded early Thursday morning inside the Cheetah club on 8 Mile Road. Eminem was never formally charged with any crime, and police never named any suspects in the alleged attack.

The alleged victim -- whom police did not identify but local ABC News affiliate WXYZ called Miad J. -- told the news station that he had been using a urinal next to Eminem when another man entered the bathroom and struck up a conversation with the rapper. At that point, Miad J. claimed one of Em's bodyguards warned the man to keep quiet. Miad J. said he told the bodyguard to relax, and when "Eminem got done ... he started swinging," he told WXYZ. "I wasn't even expecting it. I was just minding my own business."

A spokesperson for Cheetah told the Detroit Free Press that a fight had occurred inside the club and that Eminem was involved, but declined further comment. Police told the Free Press that the assailants fled the club in a vehicle, and that a third suspect, riding in the same car, brandished a firearm, but that he did not point it at anyone outside the club.