The Italian designer was accused of sexually aggressive behaviour in New York

Riccardo Tisci at his last Burberry show in 2022. Screen shot: burberry/YouTube

The New York F&B spot, 2 Sisters 4 Brothers Restaurant and Lounge, is not the kind of establishment you’d think that a well-known person would visit to have a night of fun. It sits on Pete Pascal Place, a rather quiet residential and commercial street, between First and Second Avenues in East Harlem. The eaterie has a nondescript exterior and a signage that sports an unremarkable logo, featuring the ‘2’ and the ‘4’ of its name that could easily be mistaken as an announcement of a 24-hour operation. In fact, their operating hours are between the sun-shy hours of 4pm and 3am. Inside, it is clearly a family-run neighborhood dive, offering a lot of fried food in the menu and cocktails that are apparently their main draw. Yet, it is in here that the lastest scandal involving a fashion personality unfolded.

A one-time of friend Kanye West, Riccardo Tisci, was accused of drugging and sexually assaulting a man inside the 2 Sisters 4 Brothers Restaurant and Lounge in June, 2024. According to The Independent that first reported the case, a chap who goes by Patrick Cooper filed an 11-page legal complaint in the New York Supreme Court on 29 April, 2025. In it, Mr Cooper alleges that Mr Tisci discreetly put an unspecified drug in his drink without him knowing, and he drank it. The victim was then taken to the former designer’s apartment in SoHo, where the sexual assault allegedly took place. “My intentions,” Mr Cooper told The Independent, “were never to end up in Riccardo Tisci’s bed.”

Mr Cooper alleges that Mr Tisci discreetly put an unspecified drug in his drink without him knowing, and he drank it. The victim was then taken to the former designer’s apartment in SoHo, where the sexual assault allegedly took place

In his complaint, Mr Cooper is claiming assault, battery, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress and violations of New York State’s Gender-Motivated Violence Act, according to media reports. He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages to be determined by the court. Mr Tisci denied the drugging and the assault took place. “These allegations are categorically untrue. Riccardo looks forward to clearing his name of these false and malicious accusations,” Mr Tisci’s spokesperson wrote in an email to enquires by USA Today. “He will obtain vindication through due process.” Mr Cooper reportedly met Mr Tisci through a mutual friend at a downtown club prior to going to 2 Sisters 4 Brothers Restaurant and Lounge. It is not known why the men needed to make that journey uptown to sup at the Harlem eatery.

Riccardo Tisci gained global recognition through his previous employment at Givenchy and then Burberry, where he showed his final collection for the latter in 2023. His friendship with the likes of Kim Kardashian since his years at Givenchy augmented his popularity, professionally and personally. Mr Tisci was appreciated for his ability to fuse high fashion with streetwear and elements of pop culture. His collaborations and close relationships with celebrities such as Ms Kardashian and her then husband Mr West helped to democratize his designs and make them more accessible and appealing to a younger, digitally engaged demographic. Since his departure from Burberry, he has kept a relatively low profile until now. Last August, two months after the alleged assault, Mr Tisci told the Financial Times: “Creative people get into a very dark tunnel. Sometimes, everything that [other] people see is positive and beautiful, but behind that is insecurity and darkness.” He said he came out of that tunnel. But, perhaps, not.