Busta Rhymes Countersues Ex-Assistant for ‘Fabricating’ Assault Lawsuit

Busta Rhymes has launched defamation counterclaims against a erstwhile adjunct who accused the seasoned rapper of punching him successful the look for utilizing his telephone connected the job.

Rhymes (Trevor Smith Jr.) was hit with a lawsuit this summertime from Dashiel Gables, who worked arsenic the rapper’s idiosyncratic adjunct for astir six months starting successful July 2024. Gables alleges Rhymes routinely abused employees and that the rapper physically assaulted him successful the lobby of a Brooklyn luxury high-rise past January.

At the clip the suit was filed, Rhymes called it “an attempted shakedown by a disgruntled erstwhile assistant” and vowed to countersue. He has present followed done with a defamation counterclaim docketed connected Monday (Oct. 13) successful national court.

“Smith did not battle oregon batter Gables,” writes Rhymes’ lawyer Patrick Butler. “Gables knew the statements were false, oregon acted with reckless disregard for the truth, including by fabricating allegations of transgression behaviour and violence, omitting exculpatory facts and deliberately ignoring contrary evidence.”

The countersuit alleges that Gables’ precise nationalist suit has damaged Rhymes’ estimation and caused him humiliation and embarrassment. The rapper besides says helium mislaid 2 advertizing campaigns arsenic a effect of Gables’ defamatory claims.

Generally speaking, statements made successful tribunal are shielded from immoderate liability for defamation nether a rule known arsenic the litigation privilege. Rhymes’ countersuit attempts to get astir this regulation by alleging that Gables shared his suit with the property and encouraged media reports astir it.

Gables’ lawyers did not instantly instrumentality a petition for remark connected Monday.

The lawsuit, filed successful August, claimed that Rhymes “routinely degraded” Gables and different employees by screaming, threatening, smacking and spitting astatine them. The rapper demanded that Gables enactment much than 15 hours a time but refused to wage him overtime, according to the erstwhile assistant.

Gables said this mediocre attraction escalated successful the aboriginal hours of Jan. 10, erstwhile helium was unloading Rhymes’ luggage successful the lobby of the rapper’s Brooklyn flat building. Gables allegedly received a telephone from his girl and tried to respond via text, sending Rhymes “into a rage.”

“He screamed ‘Stay the f–k disconnected your phone,” wrote Gables’ lawyers successful the complaint. “When plaintiff explained it was his daughter, Busta Rhymes responded, ‘Don’t archer maine astir your f–king kid, what the f–k that gotta bash with me? When Plaintiff responded that it could person been an emergency, Busta Rhymes asked ‘are you talking portion I’m talking?’ and then, with a closed fist, punched plaintiff successful the face.”

The erstwhile adjunct alleged helium had to spell to the infirmary to get attraction for his injuries, and that helium was aboriginal “blacklisted” from the hip-hop industry. Gables besides filed a constabulary study against Rhymes, but nary charges were ever brought.

Rhymes denies each of Gables’ allegations successful his Monday reply and counterclaim. He besides asserts a slew of defenses to the lawsuit, including that “any behaviour to which plaintiff was allegedly subjected constituted nary much than petty slights and trivial inc...