Busta Rhymes has been sued for assault in Manhattan Supreme Court by a man who claims the rapper and his bodyguard assaulted him for no reason.
Melvin Smith, 37, claims Busta Rhymes and co-defendant Troy Green assaulted him without reason.
Smith’s lawyer Bruce Regenstreich said his client sought an autograph from rhymes in a sandwich shop near City Hall in Manhattan.
“Melvin went in to get an autograph and got a knuckle sandwich instead,” Regenstreich said.
Smith, who is a handyman, said he required four stitches to close a cut over his eye.
He also said he has not been able to work because of back and neck injuries he sustained as a result of the alleged assault.
Smith is seeking an unspecified amount in damages from Busta Rhymes.
In May of 2003, Busta Rhymes was charged with misdemeanor assault and battery charges, after an altercation with a fan in Dec. 2002 at Jake’s Twin Saloons in Fall River, Massachusetts.
In that incident, a woman claimed Rhymes shoved her against the table, grabbed her by her hair and threatened to kill her, after she touched his face.
The woman was also charged with misdemeanor assault and battery charges after she admitted to touching Rhymes during the incident as well.
Busta Rhymes denied the allegations and stated he simply grabbed the woman by the hand and told her “please make sure you don’t touch me again.”
Rhymes was eventually cleared of the assault and battery charges.
The lawsuit comes as New York Police Department detectives seek to questions Rhymes about the Feb. 5 murder of his bodyguard, Israel Ramirez.
Police believe an argument between G-Unit rapper Tony Yayo and Ruff Ryders producer Swizz Beatz sparked the deadly shooting.
Police have threatened to subpoena Rhymes in order to question him about his knowledge of the shooting, which took place on a celebrity filled video set in Brooklyn.
