Martial arts star Iko Uwais is fighting back against accusations of assault, claiming that he was defending himself from the alleged victim.
Related — ‘The Raid’ star Iko Uwais accused of assault against interior designer
Iko held a press conference in South Jakarta yesterday evening, offering his side of the story. Previously, his neighbor and interior designer, Rudi, said he was beaten up by the Hollywood action star when he pressed Iko about an alleged unpaid bill.
In the press conference, Iko accused Rudi of flipping the narrative, saying that he has actually paid for Rudi’s services in full but claims that the interior designer had not completed the project at his new home in Cibubur.
“The conflict arose from when my client tried to locate Rudi’s whereabouts, because he had not carried out what he was obligated to do per the agreement,” Iko’s lawyer, Leonardus Sagala, said.
On Saturday, Leonardus said Rudi and his wife met with Iko and his wife, singer Audy Item, outside of the latter’s Bekasi home.
“During that argument, the one who actually did the provocation were Rudi and his wife,” the lawyer said.
He added that Iko was protecting himself and his brother Firmansyah — who was also present during the incident — from Rudi’s attack.
“If the intention was to assault or gang up [on Rudi], they would’ve pummeled him when he was down. But no, they let him be. Because [Iko’s] intention was not to assault to injure,” Leonardus said, adding that Iko suffered some bruising throughout his body from Rudi’s attack.
Iko and his legal team has filed a complaint for defamation against Rudi, which would hinge on them presenting evidence that the The Raid star was only defending himself.
Police are questioning all parties involved and have yet to announce charges.
Rudi previously claimed that Iko and Firmansyah assaulted him first after he demanded Iko complete his payment for his interior design services.
