Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Lohan claims to have been assaulted in her New York hotel room early Sunday. The man who allegedly assaulted Lohan had apparently been secretly taking pictures of the actress throughout the night and reportedly reacted violently when confronted about it. Reuters

Lindsay Lohan claims to have been assaulted in her New York hotel room early Sunday. The man who allegedly assaulted Lohan had apparently been secretly taking pictures of the actress throughout the night and reportedly reacted violently when confronted about it.

The two met at the 1 Oak nightclub in the Chelsea section of Manahattan and went back to Lohan’s hotel room with several friends, according to TMZ. In the hotel room, Lindsay learned the man, later identified as Christian LaBella, had been taking pictures of her with his cellphone all night and emailing them to friends.

Sources told TMZ that Lohan confronted LaBella about his picture-taking. LaBella then allegedly threw her on the hotel bed, reportedly leaving several scratches on Lohan. The actress left the room, but was assaulted anew when she re-entered a while later, the sources said. At that time, the actress claimed, LaBella attacked Lohan, choking her and throwing her to the ground.

One of Lohan’s friends, who was present, managed to pull LaBella off the actress, and she pulled the fire alarm to call for help. Police arrived on the scene and arrested LaBella on two misdemeanor counts of assault and two counts of harassment, according to TMZ.

Lohan’s representative, Steve Honig, confirmed key elements of the story to TMZ. "Lindsay was assaulted early this morning in a New York hotel,” Honig said. “While she did sustain some injuries, she was not hospitalized. The assailant was arrested and is currently in police custody. Lindsay has spoken with police and is fully cooperating with the investigation."

However, the charges were subsequently dropped, according to E! Online. Other media outlets have indicated each of the two parties may file counterclaims against the other.

“She's very shaken up,” Lohan’s mother, Dina, told the New York Daily News. “Thank God he didn't have a weapon.”

LaBella, 26, is originally from Valley Village, Calif., but he currently works in Washington for U.S. Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill.

"While no one from Congressman Shimkus' office has been contacted by Mr. LaBella following his arrest, he has been an employee in the congressman's Washington office,” a representative of the legislator told the Daily News via email. “Obviously, the congressman does not condone his actions.”