Police conducted a wellness check on Britney Spears on Wednesday after the pop star posted a video of herself dancing with knives, law enforcement confirmed to HuffPost.
Someone who knew Spears personally ― not a concerned fan ― called police to express concerns, according to a spokesperson with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office in California.
“We typically don’t do things like that when fans call in and have concerns about celebrities and what’s said or done on social media,” Dean Worthy of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office told HuffPost on Thursday.
“However, we’ve added the information and determined this individual was not simply a fan. Rather this person was close with Miss Spears and had a relationship and knew her on a personal basis.”
The law enforcement officer ― who knows Spears and has checked on her at the house previously ― left after Spears’ head of security and her attorney each assured him the singer was OK, Worthy said.
Spears’ head of security said over an intercom that the star was “absolutely fine” and did not want to talk to the officer in person, according to Worthy. Her attorney then called the officer.
Her attorney “basically echoed the same belief as the security head that she was absolutely fine and that this was an overreaction to her video which is just her expressing herself,” Worthy said. As such, Worthy said they had “sufficient information” to determine that Spears was not in harm’s way.
Many facets of Spears’ life ― her relationships, mental health issues and a long battle with conservatorship ― have played out on public display. And while the singer regularly posts videos of herself dancing on social media, her inclusion of what appeared to be two butcher knives in her most recent video prompted concern from fans, despite her later insisting that the knives weren’t real.
Spears directly responded to her fans’ concerns on Tuesday by telling them to “lighten up” and that she was only paying tribute to Shakira’s MTV Video Music Awards performance earlier this month.
In a follow-up Instagram post shared on Friday morning, the Grammy winner added: “I know I spooked everyone with the last post, but these are fake knives that my team rented from Hand Prop shop in LA. These are not real knives. No one needs to worry or call the police.
“I’m trying to imitate one of my favourite performers Shakira... a performance I was inspired by!!! Cheers to us bad girls who aren’t afraid to push boundaries and take risks.”
A representative for Spears did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment. However, NBC News cited an unnamed source close to the singer who claimed the wellness check and fan concern was “overblown”.
“She was expressing her freedom as she continues to do,” the source told NBC News, adding that Spears is doing “fine.”
In January, a little over a year after the end of her conservatorship, Spears fans called police to request a wellness check over concerns for her mental health. At the time, Spears said she was portrayed unfairly by the media.
“The police never entered my home and when they came to my gate they quickly realised there was no issue and left immediately,” Spears said.
“This felt like I was being gaslit and bullied once the incident made it to the news and being portrayed once again in a poor and unfair light by the media.”
About a week later, Spears told her followers on Instagram that she was doing great.
“Since everyone thinks they know my story. THINK AGAIN!!!” she wrote. “Nope I’m not having a breakdown … I am who I am and moving forward in my life [after her 13-year conservatorship ended]. I have never felt better!!!”