The security guard at the centre of a growing row involving Chappell Roan and Jude Law’s daughter has broken his silence — denying he was even part of the singer’s team.
The confusing situation began when Brazilian soccer star Jorginho Frello – who is married to Catherine Harding, the mother of Jude’s daughter – posted a statement on social media, blasting the singer and her security for the way they berated his stepdaughter, who was not named but appears to have been 11-year-old Ada.
Now, celebrity bodyguard Pascal Duvier has issued a statement on Instagram following days of online speculation, insisting he was working for another, unnamed client during the incident at the hotel in Brazil in which he confronted the mother and daughter.
‘I do not normally address online rumours, but the accusations currently circulating are false and constitute defamation,’ he wrote. ‘I was at the hotel on behalf of another individual, and I was not part of the personal security team of Chappell Roan.’
Duvier disputed the characterisation of the encounter as ‘aggressive.’ In his statement, he said his actions were based on a ‘judgement call’ informed by prior events and heightened security concerns.
‘My sole interaction with the mother was calm and with good intentions,’ he said, adding that the outcome was ‘regretful.’
In his original post about the incident, Jorginho said his stepdaughter was left ‘extremely shaken’ and ‘cried a lot’ after the encounter.
‘I went through a very upsetting situation with my family earlier today,’ the 34-year-old began.
‘My wife (@catcavelli) is in Sao Paulo for @lollapaloozabr. This morning, my daughter woke up incredibly excited, she even made a sign because she was so happy to see an artist she really admires or used to admire.
‘By coincidence, they’re staying at the same hotel as this artist. During breakfast, the artist walked past their table. My daughter, like any child, recognised her, got excited, and just wanted to make sure it was really her.’
He continued: ‘And the worst part is she didn’t even approach her. She simply walked past the singer’s table, looked to confirm it was her, smiled, and went back to sit with her mum. She didn’t say anything, didn’t ask for anything.
‘What happened next was completely disproportionate. A large security guard came over to their table while they were still having breakfast and began speaking in an extremely aggressive manner to both my wife and my daughter, saying that she shouldn’t allow my daughter to “disrespect” or “harass” other people.
‘Honestly, I don’t know at what point simply walking past a table and looking to see if someone is there can be considered harassment. He even said he would file a complaint against them with the hotel, while my 11-year-old daughter was sitting there in tears. My daughter was extremely shaken and cried a lot.’
The sports star went on to share: ‘I’ve lived with football, public exposure, and well-known people for many years, and I understand very well what respect and boundaries are. What happened there was not that. It was just a child admiring someone.’
Jorginho then said it was ‘sad to see this kind of treatment coming from those who should understand the importance of fans’. ‘At the end of the day, they are the ones who build all of this. I sincerely hope this serves as a moment of reflection. No one should have to go through this, especially not a child.’
Wrapping up his post, he directly called out the singer, tagging her official account and writing: ‘WITHOUT YOUR FANS, YOU WOULD BE NOTHING. AND TO THE FANS, SHE DOES NOT DESERVE YOUR AFFECTION.’
In a video posted over the weekend, Harding said her daughter had simply smiled at Roan as she passed by her table, without approaching her or attempting to take a photo.
‘She didn’t have her phone, she didn’t try to take a picture, she didn’t do anything,’ Harding said. ‘She just looked and smiled.’
According to Harding, the situation escalated when the security guard approached them and spoke in what she described as an ‘aggressive tone,’ allegedly criticising her parenting and accusing them of harassing the singer.
Roan — whose real name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz — has also publicly distanced herself from the incident, stating she was unaware anything had happened.
‘I’m just going to tell my half of the story that happened today with a mother and child who were involved with a security guard, who is not my personal security,’ she began in the video.
‘I didn’t even see a woman and a child. No-one came up to me, no-one bothered me. Like I was just sitting at breakfast in my hotel. I think these people were staying at the hotel as well.’
Chappell then went on to say she ‘did not ask’ the security guard to approach the mother and child. ‘I did not. They did not even come up to me,’ she said.
‘They weren’t doing anything. It’s unfair for security to just assume someone doesn’t have good intentions when they have no reason to believe, because no action has been taken.’
She went on: ‘I do not hate people who are fans of my music.’ ‘I do not hate children,’ she said before laughing. ‘That is crazy. I am sorry to that mother and child – that someone was assuming that you would do something. That makes me really sad – you did not deserve that.’
A spokesperson for the singer reinforced that message, saying: ‘Chappell was not aware of any interaction between this mother/daughter and a third-party security officer… She did not direct her personal security or anyone on her team to interact with them.’
The statement added that Roan has ‘zero tolerance’ for aggressive behaviour towards fans.
Despite Roan’s response, the incident appears to have had a lasting impact.
Harding has since revealed that the experience ultimately led them to skip Roan’s performance at the Lollapalooza São Paulo, which had been intended as a birthday gift.
Instead, the family spent time with Lewis Capaldi, whom Harding described as ‘kind’ in a follow-up post.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.