Louis Tomlinson arrested after airport bust-up as One Direction fan tells of horror when he ‘threw her to the floor’
A 1D fan last night told how star Louis Tomlinson “socked” her in the face and hurled her to the ground after brawling with a photographer in an astonishing airport bust-up.
The Sun On Sunday can exclusively reveal pictures of the 1D star being led away by cops after being arrested following the fracas at Los Angeles Airport.
The boyband hunk could be jailed for six months after being accused of wrestling the snapper to the floor, before bundling the girl over and striking her in the face.
Afterwards the young woman, 22, who sported a cut over her left eye, said: “Yeah I’m going to press charges.
“The guy socked me.
“He’s going to go to jail.
“The guy just grabbed me and threw me to the floor and he socked me and that’s it.”
The drama unfolded on Friday night as Louis and on-off girlfriend Eleanor Calder, 24, flew in from Charlotte, North Carolina.
And another video, obtained by , shows Louis rushing to his girlfriend's side as the brawl unfolded.
As they were waiting at at the baggage carousel in matching blue tracksuits, Louis is said to have asked photographer Karl Larssen to put his camera away before lunging at him.
Mr Larssen told cops: “He was actually smaller than me, but he got my leg and then I was off balance.
“He lunged for the camera then he lifted up my leg and then he hit me and I hit my own head.
“I think he came down with me.
“I was disorientated and I heard everyone screaming.”
Raging Louis then reportedly rushed over to a corner of the baggage hall where Eleanor was fighting with the girl fan who had pulled out her mobile phone as the incident erupted.
Two other girls were then said to have got involved.
The young woman added: “She pulled my phone, we started fighting.”
Louis is accused of tackling her around the waist, knocking her down, then striking her in the left eye.
She claimed she was a fan and was just trying to film him on her phone.
The drama unfolded on Friday night as Louis and Eleanor flew in from Charlotte, North Carolina.
, showing Louis walk toward Mr Larssen shouting: “Oi, oi, oi oi!”
As stunned travellers look on, the star grapples with the snapper and tries to grab his camera before they both end up in a heap on the floor.
A northern voice, thought to be Louis, then says: “Excuse me, what is happening?
“What is happening here?
“Can we have some help?”
MOST POPULAR IN SHOWBIZ
He then runs over to Eleanor, who is in the middle of another fight with the three screaming women.
The star then appears to launch himself at the young fan, wearing a grey tracksuit, who is squaring up to his girlfriend.
The 55-second footage shows Louis pulling her from behind onto the floor.
Louis loses his top in the scuffle, as a number of witnesses step forward to help.
He appears to leave the top behind on the floor.
He is then shown to leap up and point at Eleanor, who has her tracksuit hood up and her rucksack on her back, before appearing to say: “My girlfriend.”
The pair are then marched out of the area by a passer-by, while a startled airport worker tries to hold back the three women.
Another voice is heard to yell: “Call the police.”
The photographer performed a citizen’s arrest on Louis, who was then taken to an LA Pacific Division jail and held on suspicion of battery.
The female witness and the photographer both filed Private Persons Arrest statements and the photographer was transported to a local hospital suffering from concussion.
He was then arrested himself after being told Louis wanted to press charges against him, before eventually being released.
The girl was treated for her injuries at the scene.
A Los Angeles Airport Police report said: “Witnesses stated that Tomlinson pulled the photographer to the floor by his legs causing the victim to fall backwards and strike his back and head on the floor.
“A female witness began to video Tomlinson’s companion as she tried to leave.
“An altercation took place between the companion and the witness.
“Tomlinson intervened and attempted to take the witness’s phone, grabbing the female by the waist causing her to fall.
“During the altercation the witness was struck in the eye.”
Our exclusive shots show Louis hiding his face with his hood as he is led away.
His official arrest record states he was eventually released from custody at 1.32am on Saturday.
The document also shows Louis, from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, was ordered to produce £16,000 bail but he was released without having to pay it.
It says the star, said to be worth £40million, is due to appear in court on March 29.
Six months in jail is the maximum penalty allowed under Californian law for this type of crime for first-time offenders.
A conviction for the crime could also result in a £1,600 fine.
Louis’ lawyer Martin Singer last night said the photographer had provoked his client.
He said in a statement: “The paparazzi provoked and caused the altercation that occurred with Louis.
“It’s not the first time the paparazzi has created an altercation with a celebrity.
“While the altercation was going on, three other individuals were attacking his girlfriend and he came to her defence.”
Louis and Eleanor rekindled their romance following the death of his mother, Johannah Poulston, aged just 43, in December last year.
They had previously dated for around up three years before splitting in 2015.
He had previously been going out with actress Danielle Campbell, after having a baby with American Briana Jungwirth in January 2016.
Louis and Eleanor made their relationship official again last week when they re-followed each other on Instagram.
A fan then took to Instagram to confirm that she had bumped into Tomlinson with his “girlfriend” during the break.
- Sun on Sunday copyright. Our lawyers are watching.