A Juilliard-trained violinist claims he can no longer play after a bizarre attack at a Staples store in Manhattan.
Alai Belai says he walked into the office supply store in Washington Heights to buy a tablet, and ended up body slammed into a rack in an inexplicable assault.
The August incident unfolded after Belai asked to see the box for the tablet he wanted to purchase, he alleges in a Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit against Staples and the employee.
The worker, whose name tag read “Idrissa,” “was aggressive and rude immediately,” Belai claims in court papers.
Idrissa repeatedly refused to show Belai the tablet’s box, then lunged at the musician, shoving him into the rack and pinning him there before placing Belai in a chokehold until he briefly lost consciousness, the violinist said in legal papers.
When he awoke, Belai realized he had two deep cuts on his right forearm, he said. Now he’s unable to hold his violin bow. Belai is seeking unspecified damages. Staples did not return a message.