Video has reportedly emerged of Oscar-winning actor Cuba Gooding Jr. allegedly groping a woman inside a New York City nightclub last weekend.
Security footage from the Magic Hour Rooftop Lounge, obtained and posted online by TMZ, shows Gooding and his girlfriend sitting on a couch when the accuser sits down next to them.
Almost immediately, Gooding — appearing inebriated — reaches over his date and places his hand on the woman’s left thigh. His hand then moves up toward her breast, and the accuser puts her hand on his.
For his part, Gooding, 51, who turned himself in Thursday to NYPD on charges of forcible touching, a misdemeanor, and sexual abuse in the third degree, claims the video actually exonerates him.
“We have reviewed the tapes, and we do not see any criminal conduct having been perpetrated on his part,” Gooding attorney Mark Heller told The Daily Beast. “He respects women. I’ve known him for over 30 years, this is not something he would do.”
Gooding has pleaded not guilty to the two charges stemming from the woman’s accusations.