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Cuba Gooding Jr.turned himself in to the New York Police Department on Thursday, the NYPD confirms, following allegations thathe groped a womanat a rooftop bar in Manhattan over the weekend.
He was arrested and faces a charge of forcible touching, a misdemeanor, in connection with the incident on Sunday. He is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon.
According to theNew York Times, a woman told police that the 51-year-old Oscar-winning actor touched her breasts at the Magic Hour Rooftop Bar and Lounge on 7th Avenue in Manhattan.
The woman said Gooding was “highly intoxicated” and explained that they got into an argument after he inappropriately touched her and she resisted, according to Page Six.
Witnesses at the club told Page Six that Gooding was in a joyful mood and was socializing with other club goers.
“He was super good … and with everyone,” the witness told the outlet.
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He was also seen on surveillance cameras leaving the club later in the night, according toPage Six.
A law enforcement official told theTimesthat investigators found security camera footage that allegedly verified the woman’s allegations.
The woman is a New York University student, the Times reports.
Gooding’s attorney Mark J. Heller says he has viewed surveillance footage of the “entire event” and “there was not a drop of criminal conduct or inappropriate activity on his part.”
“I know the video, which covered the entire evening, shows absolutely no conduct or any inappropriateness on Cuba’s part,” he tells PEOPLE. “And I am frankly shocked the prosecutor would consider a case like this.”
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Heller says he plans to “vigorously defend” theBoyz n the HoodandJerry Maguireactor.
“I have known Cuba for almost 30 years and his conduct towards women is always respectful,” he says. “He respects women and he would never engage in that type of activity.”
“I trust the system, let the process speak for itself,” he said. “There’s a tape that shows what really happened.”
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Gooding, who starred as O.J. Simpson inThe People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, filed for divorce from his estranged wife Sara Kapfer in 2017.
The filing came nearly three years after Kapfer filed for legal separation from Gooding in April 2014 citing irreconcilable differences.
The former couple share three children: sons Spencer, 25, and Mason, 22, and daughter Piper, 14.
source: people.com
