His world may be in upheaval, but Chris Brown is holed up in a Hollywood hotel, keeping quiet.
While information continues to trickle out about what was apparently an ugly dispute between the R&B star and his girlfriend, Rihanna, one of his major sponsors, gum maker Wrigley, is distancing itself from the 19-year-old "Forever" singer.
According to a source close to the investigation, Rihanna made the 911 call to police after Brown "fled on foot" from the scene following the attack. Two officers from the LAPD Wilshire Division found Rihanna in Brown's rented silver Lamborghini "beaten really badly and hysterical."
Brown had taken the keys to the car with him and Rihanna was basically left on the side of the road with the car.
"Rihanna didn't want anyone to touch her, she was in so much pain," the source says.
Rihanna, whose full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, had visible bruising and scrapes on her face and what appeared to be bite marks on her body. Officers took her to the emergency room at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for treatment.
A member of Rihanna's inner circle tells E! News her family is making plans to get her out of L.A.: "They want to get her back to Barbados. They want to keep her away from Chris right now."
Although the Los Angeles Police Department issued a statement Sunday night saying Brown had been arrested on suspicion of making criminal threats and could face additional charges now that the case had been forwarded to the district attorney, prosecutors tell E! News that the announcement was premature and the investigation is ongoing.
"LAPD are telling some reporters that we received the evidence but we have not received anything yet," says Jane Robison, spokeswoman for the county district attorney. "Normally it would come in today, maybe this afternoon, but no, they haven't presented it and I don't know when they will."
Robison says the probe is still continuing—unusual for such cases—as detectives want to make sure they do a thorough job, given that a celebrity is involved.
Brown's camp, including newly hired criminal attorney Mark Geragos (who has represented the likes of Michael Jackson and Winona Ryder), has remained mum on the incident.
Meanwhile, LAPD spokeswoman April Harding is shooting down a TMZ report from earlier today (which has since been corrected) that claimed Brown used "a deadly weapon" during his alleged attack.
"There is absolutely no truth to that story. If it had been a deadly weapon involved, he would have been charged with a deadly weapons charge," says Harding.
Citing department policy for domestic violence cases, Harding declined to release the name of the victim. Multiple sources have confirmed to E! News that it indeed is Rihanna, the 20-year-old songstress Brown has been dating for over a year.
Brown and Rihanna apparently got into a nasty fight around 12:30 a.m. Sunday while heading home from Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy party, which they had cheerily attended.
About six hours after the incident, Brown surrendered and was booked on suspicion of making criminal threats, a count that carries a maximum penalty of four years, and was released from jail on $50,000 bail. The Lamborghini remains impounded. As for Brown, he is still scheduled to participate in the NBA's All-Star festivities in Phoenix on Feb. 15, including playing in a celebrity game two days prior.
Sources at Rihanna's Def Jam Records label have suggested that she may scrap an upcoming Asian tour. The performer is set to play a concert this Friday at Stadium Putra in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. However, in order to keep that date, she'd have to leave Los Angeles no later than Wednesday.
Her publicist has refused to comment on the situation other than to point to Sunday's statement claiming the "Disturbia" diva was doing "well" and thanking fans for their "concern and support."
Finally, in the wake of the allegations, Wrigley has suspended advertisements for Doublemint gum featuring Chris Brown until the case has been resolved. One of the commercials ran during last night's Grammy Awards, for which Brown and Rihanna both sat out.
—Additional reporting by Claudia Rosenbaum and Ken Baker
(Originally published Feb. 9, 2009, at 11:55 a.m. PT.)
