Man who ‘attacked Dave Chappelle on stage’ is charged with attempted murder of his roommate
Isaiah Lee, 23, has been charged with allegedly stabbing his roommate during a fight
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The man who is accused of tackling comedian Dave Chappelle on stage with a replica gun and knife during a performance has been charged with attempted murder in a separate case.
Isaiah Lee, 23, has been charged with allegedly stabbing his roommate during a fight at a transitional housing apartment on 2 December last year, said the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office in a statement on Thursday.
“The publicity generated by the attack on Mr Chappelle helped police solve this crime,” said Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón in the statement.
“Based on the nature and severity of the December attack, Mr Lee is now facing felony charges which my office will prosecute,” he added.
The roommate was not identified by police.
It comes as the Los Angeles DA office did not file felony charges against Mr Lee in a high-profile case involving the alleged assault on Chappelle. Instead, he faces four misdemeanour charges in the case.
He was arrested on 3 May on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon which later turned out to be a replica handgun. Police said he ran on stage at the Netflix is a Joke festival in Los Angeles and lunged at the comedian.
Chappelle was not injured during the incident. His security entourage managed to get the attacker off him.
Prosecutors determined that while the incident constituted criminal conduct, the evidence as presented did not constitute felony conduct. The DA’s office does not prosecute misdemeanour crimes in LA.
The police later confirmed that the weapon which looked like a gun had a knife blade.
Mr Lee pleaded not guilty in both cases.
His lawyer Chelsea Padilla told a judge that he is receiving mental health assistance from a local nonprofit organisation.
Mr Lee’s roommate identified him as the person who committed an assault on him after the media reports about the attack on the comedian, said the statement.
He had previously reported the case to the police but it is not known why he did not name him.