Verizon has dropped support for Akon after reports of an onstage incident in Trinidad in April.
The multi-platinum Senegalese-American hip hop star was caught on video simulating aggressive sex with a 14-year old onstage in Trinidad. Footage has been leaked of the incident, where Akon throws the girl around onstage to cheers from the crowd.It followed an impromptu dance competition where Akon reportedly promised the winner a trip to Africa. The teenager Danah Alleyne "won" the contest, but rather than receiving any prize, she was subject to a humiliating public spectacle.
Alleyne, the daughter of a Trinidad pastor and sister to the president of the Trinidad And Tobago Crime Watch, said in a public apology "I did not know what to do and with the crowd cheering and stuff I guess I got a little carried away. But there was nothing I could have done about it. I was in a state of real shock."
Verizon told Fox News that they have ended their partnership with Akon and the current tour as support act for Gwen Stefani. Fox reports that Trinidad's Prime Minister Patrick Manning has called for a formal investigation into the incident.
