(KTLA-TV)
LOS ANGELES -- Prosecutors are considering whether to charge former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and a photographer with battery following a scuffle at LAX.
The confrontation took place at 4:30 p.m. on November 11 at the United Airlines ticket counter at Terminal 7, according to Airport police.
Tyson's spokeswoman Tammy Brook says the boxer was traveling with his wife and 10-month-old child when he was attacked by an overly aggressive paparazzo, identified as Tony Echeverria.
Brook says Tyson acted in self-defense to protect his child.
Tyson told police the photographer struck him in an attempt to provoke him, and Tyson then allegedly punched him and grabbed his camera.
"I've heard people were following him into the men's room and trying to take his picture there," said Tyson's defense attorney, David Chesnoff.
Echeverria told police Tyson hit him and he went down.
The photographer said in an interview that he was struck four times and blood was "gushing like a water fountain."
Both men made cross complaints against each other for misdemeanor battery, and each man placed the other under citizen's arrest, Holcomb said.
Echeverria suffered a "minor laceration to the forehead" and was treated at a local hospital.
He was booked at the LAPD's Pacific Division and released on $20,000 bail, according to police.
Tyson was booked on suspicion of battery at the 77th Street Station, and then released on a written promise to appear in court.
Tyson, 43, and Echeverria, 50, could be charged with misdemeanor battery, which carries a maximum of sentence of six months in jail.
Tyson could also be charged with violating probabtion in a 2007 drug case if convicted.
He pleaded guilty to cocaine possession in Arizona.
A spokesman for the Los Angeles city attorney's office, Frank Mateljan, says police have given prosecutors a preliminary report of the confrontation.
Investigators want to interview both men and see video of the incident before deciding if charges will be filed.
"My advice to him is going to be to vigorously press charges against what everyone agrees are ridiculously aggressive photographers."
This isn't the first case of trouble involving celebrity photographers at LAX.
In September 2008, Kanye West was arrested after a dispute with a paparazzo that ended with a broken camera.
Brooklyn-born Tyson became the world's youngest heavyweight champion, winning the WBC title in 1986 when he was 20 years old. He was known for his fierce style and his juvenile record as a street tough.
His career peaked in the late 1980s, and his personal life took center stage. He was convicted of rape in 1992 and spent about three years in prison..
"Iron Mike," as he was known, tried to make a comeback in the mid 1990s but was beaten by Evander Holyfield. In a 1997 rematch, Tyson was disqualified for biting off a piece of Holyfield's ear.
Earlier this year, Tyson's 4-year-old daughter, Exodus, died after she got tangled in a cord dangling from a treadmill.
The confrontation took place at 4:30 p.m. on November 11 at the United Airlines ticket counter at Terminal 7, according to Airport police.
Tyson's spokeswoman Tammy Brook says the boxer was traveling with his wife and 10-month-old child when he was attacked by an overly aggressive paparazzo, identified as Tony Echeverria.
Brook says Tyson acted in self-defense to protect his child.
Tyson told police the photographer struck him in an attempt to provoke him, and Tyson then allegedly punched him and grabbed his camera.
"I've heard people were following him into the men's room and trying to take his picture there," said Tyson's defense attorney, David Chesnoff.
Echeverria told police Tyson hit him and he went down.
The photographer said in an interview that he was struck four times and blood was "gushing like a water fountain."
Both men made cross complaints against each other for misdemeanor battery, and each man placed the other under citizen's arrest, Holcomb said.
Echeverria suffered a "minor laceration to the forehead" and was treated at a local hospital.
He was booked at the LAPD's Pacific Division and released on $20,000 bail, according to police.
Tyson was booked on suspicion of battery at the 77th Street Station, and then released on a written promise to appear in court.
Tyson, 43, and Echeverria, 50, could be charged with misdemeanor battery, which carries a maximum of sentence of six months in jail.
Tyson could also be charged with violating probabtion in a 2007 drug case if convicted.
He pleaded guilty to cocaine possession in Arizona.
A spokesman for the Los Angeles city attorney's office, Frank Mateljan, says police have given prosecutors a preliminary report of the confrontation.
Investigators want to interview both men and see video of the incident before deciding if charges will be filed.
"My advice to him is going to be to vigorously press charges against what everyone agrees are ridiculously aggressive photographers."
This isn't the first case of trouble involving celebrity photographers at LAX.
In September 2008, Kanye West was arrested after a dispute with a paparazzo that ended with a broken camera.
Brooklyn-born Tyson became the world's youngest heavyweight champion, winning the WBC title in 1986 when he was 20 years old. He was known for his fierce style and his juvenile record as a street tough.
His career peaked in the late 1980s, and his personal life took center stage. He was convicted of rape in 1992 and spent about three years in prison..
"Iron Mike," as he was known, tried to make a comeback in the mid 1990s but was beaten by Evander Holyfield. In a 1997 rematch, Tyson was disqualified for biting off a piece of Holyfield's ear.
Earlier this year, Tyson's 4-year-old daughter, Exodus, died after she got tangled in a cord dangling from a treadmill.
