Justin Bieber investigated by Brazilian police over graffiti in Rio de Janeiro
Police said they were looking into whether the pop star had broken Brazilian laws against the destruction of property
After reportedly using a brothel and storming off stage during a concert in Brazil, Justin Bieber has continued to court more controversy on the South American leg of his 'Believe' tour.
Police are investigating whether the pop star illegally graffitied a wall in Rio de Janeiro's Sao Conrado neighbourhood, after he painted faces with baseball caps on the walls outside an upscale hotel on Tuesday.
Rio police said they would look into the incident and determine whether Bieber had broken Brazilian laws against the destruction of property after complaints from local paparazzi that Bieber’s bodyguards had accosted them.
In a statement, Brazilian police said they had already interviewed a Bieber representative and would continue gathering details about the incident.
Brazil's federal police, the force charged with immigration matters, denied local media reports that investigators had sought to prevent Bieber, bound Wednesday for a show in Asuncion, Paraguay, from leaving the country.
The incident follows a whirlwind of tabloid headlines during Bieber's Brazilian stay, including reports that he had attended a Rio nightclub that in the past has been shuttered for prostitution.
Tabloids published photos they said were of the singer, wrapped in a bedsheet to conceal his identity, leaving the Centaurus club over the weekend.
A video has emerged online today of a girl filming the singer as he slept under a blanket in what is alleged to be the brothel he is said to have visited.
Melissa Victor, a publicist for Bieber at Universal Music Group in New York, did not return a phone call for comment.
With additional reporting from Reuters
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