Viral Instagram post leads to assault charge for former Christie’s agent

Cristiano Moura defended himself by claiming the incident was an opportunistic stunt ginned up by “racial instigators"

EDITOR’S NOTE, May 29, 2020, 4:15 p.m.: Jasmine Yvette was arrested on Dec. 18, 2019, according to state records. The Manhattan District Attorney’s office confirmed on April 9, 2020 that Yvette has been charged with harassment and assault. On May 29, the DA declined to prosecute Cristiano Moura’s arrest.

The former Christie’s International Real Estate agent accused of attacking a woman in a viral Instagram post from late November was arrested and charged with assault Thursday, according to the New York Police Department.

Cristiano Moura was issued a desk appearance ticket, meaning he was released from the precinct and did not go to central booking, police said. He is due in court on Dec. 23 to answer for the assault charge, according to the NYPD.

Jasmine Yvette, an intern on the radio show “The Breakfast Club,” accused Moura of beating her up, biting her and calling her “one of them uneducated ignorant black bitches” during a shared Lyft ride in a Nov. 25 Instagram post that was later removed. She claimed the situation started when Moura asked her to turn down the volume on her phone and escalated quickly from there.

Moura was removed from Christie’s site after the post went viral last month. In an emailed statement Friday, a spokesperson said that Moura “is no longer an independent contractor” for the brokerage.

Moura vigorously disputed Yvette’s claims in an email, saying that he never assaulted her verbally or physically. He characterized himself as a victim and said she called him a gay slur during the incident.

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“The screenshot of me she posted on her social media and helped to become viral shows me harmed, confused and pointing to my injuries,” he said.

He described the whole situation as an opportunistic stunt ginned up by “racial instigators” and said he plans to press charges against Yvette.

“I would never shame anyone for the color of their skin,” he said. “I am a minority myself (gay and a Latino man) and have the utmost empathy for people.”

Yvette’s attorney Tahanie Aboushi confirmed that Moura was arrested but did not respond to a request for additional comment.

Yvette’s post garnered more than 9,000 likes and more than 1,400 comments before being taken down, and a repost on the account of controversial activist Shaun King garnered more than 41,000 likes and almost 40,000 comments.