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Justin Bieber vs. the Paparazzi: Eyewitness Says Singer, Selena Gomez Were "Swarmed"

Shopper at the Calabasas mall who saw the headline-grabbing altercation tells E! News exclusively what she saw

By Gina Serpe Jun 01, 2012 7:33 PMTags
Justin BieberRaef-Ramirez/AKM-GSI

This week hasn't exactly been filled with sunshine and roses for Justin Bieber. And while it ended with the teen dream facing his most painful nemesis to date—pane of glass, he will have his revenge!—it began with him facing one of his most annoying: a paparazzo.

And now an eyewitness to the headline-grabbing altercation involving Bieber, Selena Gomez and the offending shutterbug has stepped forward, giving E! News her account of the already infamous incident...

Though the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department tells E! News there are no new updates on their investigation into last weekend's faceoff at the Calabasas Commons shopping center, and Bieber's reps have offered no statement on the incident, a woman who witnessed the encounter has shared some new information on the events that unfolded.

According to the woman, while just one cameraman has taken issue with his alleged treatment by the pop superstar, Justin and Selena were being trailed by a roughly a dozen paparazzi, to the point where they could barely move through the parking lot.

Eventually they persevered and got to their car, which at that point, according to the fellow shopper, was "swarming" with photographers.

"Justin was simply trying to move their vehicle out of its parking space, but couldn't," the eyewitness said.

Justin shouted at the paparazzi in an attempt to clear his path so he could leave the space, but they did not, resulting in Bieber getting out of his car and approaching the lensmen who were in his direct way.

In the ensuing altercation, Bieber "fell on his face and lost his shoe." According to the eyewitness, the 18-year-old suffered a scraped and reddened jaw in the skirmish.

After the initial unpleasant encounter, Bieber got back into his car and drove off, only for him and Selena to return to the mall a few minutes later, ostensibly to find Selena's phone which seemingly got lost somewhere in the activity of the previous moments. The phone wasn't found, and the young couple thanked those nearby and drove away.

In any case, though the encounter was likely jarring, Justin seems to have once again found his mojo, thanks no doubt in part to the adoring, near-riotous crowds he's attracting on his current tour through Europe.