Ed Lover, hip-hop radio personality from Power 105.1 in New York, was arrested Thursday morning and charged with two counts of third-degree assault, one count of attempted assault and one count of second-degree harassment following an incident early Sunday morning in a New York Chelsea nightclub.

42 year old Lover, (real name James Roberts), is accused of punching a Letitia Belford, a 26-year-old woman in the left cheek 26, at Duvet early Sunday. The blow left the victim with a mild concussion and a gash requiring 20 stitches. According to police records, Lover, who works the afternoon shift on New York's Power 105.1, turned himself over to the authorities with attorney Michael Berger by his side. Lover was arraigned later that afternoon and released on $1,000 bail.

Lover is due in court on March 23.

According to court documents, Lover — a former Yo! MTV Raps host and occasional actor — was at club Duvet with a group of friends when the victim bumped into one of his female companions. The two women started fighting and one of the club's bouncers intervened. Lover allegedly worked his way around the bouncer and punched the victim in the face.

Police had been looking to question Lover about the incident for most of the week.

Belford's attorney, Andrew Laskin, complained that workers at the trendy W. 21st St. club gushed over Lover while his client gushed blood.

"The club was much more concerned about him," he said. "They didn''t try to stop him. They didn''t hold him. They didn''t call 911."

According to police and Laskin, the 6-foot-3, 230-pound deejay apparently punched the petite victim after she got into an argument with a female friend of Lover's.

Lorraine Belkin, manager of Duvet, denied that the club failed to help Belford, saying she personally took the victim to the bathroom before ambulances arrived. Belkin said police weren''t called because Belford said she didn''t want to press charges.

"We definitely did everything that we could," Belkin said. "We would never just let someone go." Belford was stitched up at St. Vincent's Hospital and could require further surgery. Her attorney described her as a "young professional" with a bachelor's degree in political science.

Contributing Sources

MTV

New York Daily News