EXCLUSIVE

5:50 PM PT -- Cuba Gooding Jr.'s attorney, Mark Heller, tells us he has viewed surveillance video from the bar and says it shows "absolutely no criminality taking place on the part of my client." 

Heller says he's contacted the Manhattan D.A.'s Office Sex Crimes Unit but has not gotten a return phone call. He is trying to find out if they've seen the surveillance video. Heller says he can't believe they would seek to arrest Cuba ... if they'd seen the video.

He says it's up in the air right now as to whether Cuba will turn himself in Thursday, as they'd planned, now that they've seen the video.

Cuba Gooding Jr. will turn himself into NYPD on Thursday and will be arrested for allegedly groping a woman -- but on camera he insists he did nothing wrong, and there's hard evidence to prove it.

Sources connected to the Oscar winner tell TMZ ... he plans to surrender Thursday and expects to be booked for a misdemeanor charge of forcible touching. Cuba was in L.A. Tuesday night -- about to board a flight to NYC -- when a photog asked him directly about the groping allegation.

Cuba says the claim he grabbed a woman's breast Sunday night at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge in Manhattan ... is absolutely untrue. He says he was there partying with friends, and posed for pics with fans, but says no one was touched inappropriately ... not even by accident.

Aside from the video we posted -- showing Cuba partying that night at the bar -- he says there's also surveillance video that will show he's innocent.

He also tipped his hat to Jon Stewart, who hours earlier had blasted Congress over the 9/11 Victims Fund, and said that's what's really important now.

As for his legal trouble ... Cuba didn't seem worried. Our Sources say he'll surrender at the Manhattan Special Victim's Unit -- and will be accompanied by his lawyers, Peter Toumbekis and Mark J. Heller. Cops will fingerprint him, and take a mug shot.

From there, as Cuba says ... he'll trust the system.

Originally Published -- 7:18 AM PT

Breaking News

Kendall Jenner just got a little peace of mind -- her alleged stalker who crawled up onto her property has been kicked out of the country.

John Ford -- the 38-year-old Canadian citizen who twice showed up at Kendall's home last year -- has been deported from the U.S. following his hearing in El Paso, Texas. Good news for Kendall, because authorities feared he could get violent.

We broke the story ... Ford was arrested by ICE in New Mexico in March after the law enforcement agency hunted him down.

Jenner's alleged stalker's had an expired visitor visa and was in the country illegally, and after his arrest an ICE spokesperson told us it "very well have prevented a violent crime," adding ... "Our special agents acted quickly on this tip to ensure that this obsessive behavior didn't escalate to become a tragedy."

As we reported ... Ford scaled a hill at Kendall's home last October and ended up by her swimming pool. He came back again shortly thereafter and ended up on her porch.

The alleged stalker was reportedly escorted by officers from El Paso to the Houston airport and flown out of the U.S. to Ontario, Canada.

Felicity Huffman's fresh off playing a villain on Netflix -- and in federal court -- but in real life, she and William H. Macy are celebrating getting their kid into a cap and gown.

The couple attended daughter Sofia Grace's high school graduation ceremony Monday, as the L.A. High School of the Arts Class of 2019 was honored. The proud parents showed up dressed for the occasion ... for which they've been preparing for a couple weeks.

We've seen Sofia's mom and dad buying graduation balloons and flower arrangements, and now the big day was finally here. It couldn't have come at a better time for Felicity ... who's been going through it professionally and personally.

She officially entered her guilty plea last month in the college admissions scandal, and is now looking at the possibility of up to 4 months in prison when she's sentenced in September.

And, then there's all the buzz around Felicity's role as Linda Fairstein in the Netflix limited series, "When They See Us." 

The series paints the former Manhattan prosecutor as the mastermind behind the false convictions of the Central Park 5 -- and Fairstein's been publicly lambasted since the series debuted.

Felicity plays her pretty brilliantly, but PR-wise -- on the heels of her federal case -- a Disney fairy godmother role might have been better. Timing. 

Like we said, at least she's got something to celebrate now.

EXCLUSIVE

Mod Sun has some unanswered questions about Bella Thorne -- the first being, why can't she take a joke? The second being ... WHERE'S MY MONEY?!?!

We got Mod Sun as he was leaving The Nice Guy in WeHo, and had to ask him about what he said a couple of weeks ago. ICYMI ... he told our friends over at TooFab that Bella's stuff was still at his place -- dubbed the Mod Sun storage unit -- and threatened to hawk it all on eBay.

Bella, of course, didn't take too kindly to this ... and blasted Mod as a fame whore.

Mod strongly hints Bella's stuff is STILL at his place, but he also says his issues with her go beyond that. We're talking finances, and specifically ... debt!!! He claims she owes him some cold hard cash, and it sounds like the already bad breakup could get way worse. 

As we reported ... Mod and Bella ended their 18-month fairy tale romance after their weekend in Coachella back in April -- and when she tried to get her stuff from his place, the ugliness began.

EXCLUSIVE

Nicki Minaj wasn't dropped from Chris Brown's upcoming tour, but ya still won't see her onstage with him -- because she's putting her music before life on the road.  

Here's the sitch -- people freaked out on Monday after Chris officially announced his IndiGOAT Tour that's set to kick off this summer ... because Nicki was left out of the lineup ... a lineup that includes Tory Lanez, Ty Dolla $ign and other big names.

INDIGOAT TOUR SUMMER 2019 featuring @torylanez @tydollasign @JoynerLucas & #YellaBeezy. Presales start 6/12 at 12pm local time!!!! https://t.co/8cexzgdbHr pic.twitter.com/Gx7dMbE29S

— Chris Brown (@chrisbrown) June 10, 2019

Why that matters, you may ask? Two months ago, a report came out claiming Chris and Nicki were going on tour together in the fall ... which Chris himself seemed to confirm by responding with the following social media message. 

Sources with knowledge tell TMZ ... Nicki never signed on to Chris' tour in any capacity.  We're told the two artists did discuss touring together after their G-Eazy collab, "Wobble Up," but talks never materialized into a deal.

We're told Nicki's the one who decided the tour wasn't for her, but not because she had beef with Chris. Her reasons were several ... she was working on music and a tour would have cut into her studio time, and she just wrapped her European tour and going out on the road again was too much.  

EXCLUSIVE

Boosie labeled American Airlines racist as hell for refusing to let him board his flight ... but the airline says the rapper's got it twisted.

ICYMI ... the rapper went on a homophobic, profanity-laced rant Sunday ... calling AA as a bunch of racist punks for refusing to let him and his kids board a flight from Charlotte to Grand Rapids, Michigan. It appears Boosie confirms he showed up late to the gate because he wrote, "The captain told you that we could be let on but you did not want us on because of your jealousy towards me."

A spokesperson for American Airlines tells TMZ ... "[Boosie's] inbound flight from Jackson, Miss., to Charlotte, NC., was delayed, and he arrived at the gate for his connecting flight to Grand Rapids, Mich., after the airplane door had been closed."

The spokesperson added, "While we understand misconnections are frustrating, [Boosie] was not denied boarding for any other reason other than he arrived after the door had already closed for departure."

The airline booked Boosie and his family another flight later that night but that didn't stop the rapper from wishing death on AA's employee and hoping for a plane crash. #RealMature.

Sounds like Boosie's jeopardized his status with AA ... the airline tells us it's reviewing Boosie's interactions with employees as well as his rant to determine his status moving forward. 

So ... what was so important in Grand Rapids that had Boosie burning up after missing his flight?

A pool party.

EXCLUSIVE

Urijah Faber knows a fighter when he sees one and he's got bad news for Justin Bieber ... the Biebs ain't got what it takes to take on Tom Cruise.

The UFC Hall of Famer was on "TMZ Live" Monday to discuss the bizarre challenge JB's thrown down ... practically begging Tom to get in the Octagon with him for an MMA brawl. Urijah says there's one huge X-factor -- and it's why he gives TC the edge -- Cruise is an experienced wrestler. 

That's right, long before he was Jack Reacher and Ethan Hunt ... Tom was throwing it down on the wrestling team at Glen Ridge High School in New Jersey. Check out the vid ... Urijah says he's seen the Biebs throw a punch and long story short ... he ain't impressed.

Ouch.

Whatever the case ... Urijah says he'd promote the hell outta the match if TC ever agrees to the challenge. To be fair, he does say Bieber has one factor on his side.

Urijah also has a very serious question -- one we're ALL thinking: What's JB's beef with Tom???

For the record ... Tom's still not responding to the challenge.

Breaking News

Linda Fairstein's world continues to crumble ... her book publisher has just kicked her to the curb as the fallout continues, following her portrayal in Netflix's miniseries, "When They See Us."

The Central Park 5 prosecutor will no longer have a relationship with Dutton, which confirmed it had "terminated its relationship" with the best-selling crime novelist. The move comes on the heels of an online push to boycott her publishers and distributors ... after the Netflix series dramatized her role that led to the wrongful conviction of 5 teens for the 1989 rape and beating of a female jogger.

Earlier this week, TMZ reached out to multiple people at both Penguin Random House and its subsidiary, Dutton -- the two publishing companies that peddled her 14 novels -- but they went radio silent. As did Linda's literary agency, ICM Partners. Not a peep.

Fairstein's latest book with Dutton had been "Blood Oath" back in March. Dutton dropping Fairstein's just the latest in a string of moves that led to Fairstein resigning from at least 2 nonprofits as well as from Vassar College.

Glamour Magazine also said it was a mistake to give her the Woman of the Year Award in '93 ... adding they wouldn't do it again. The backlash also included #CancelLindaFairstein all over social media.

AP first reported her termination.

EXCLUSIVE

UFC star Aljamain Sterling has a message for the Triple Champ Henry Cejudo ... 

"I'm ready to take that gold medal and shove it up your ass because you stink Henry Ce-Doo-Doo!!!"

And, that's just the beginning!!!

Before Cejudo beat Marlon Moraes at UFC 238 this weekend, Aljo dominated Pedro Munhoz on the undercard ... and A LOT of people think Sterling looked so good, he deserves a crack at Cejudo's new bantamweight belt. 

So, when Aljo saw Henry calling out fan favorites on Saturday like Dominick Cruz, Cody Garbrandt and Urijah Faber ... Sterling tells TMZ Sports he was shocked and disgusted. 

"I was doing the facepalm emoji, shaking my head," Sterling says.

He wants to be a legend killer? Find a legend who's actually winning!"

"Those guys haven't won a fight in god knows how long and you have a #1 contender right here in front of you!"

"So, every time I go to the bathroom, I'm gonna take a Henry Ce-doo-doo while I think about winning that belt. So, I hope Henry's ready for this."

Sterling added, "Henry, stop calling out these guys who are washed up and come for the REAL #1 contender, the real challenge."

No official word from Dana White on if Aljo will get his title shot ... but Sterling says he's confident. 

7:42 AM PT -- The hearing is over. Kelly entered a not guilty plea on the new charges and will be back in court at the end of the month. 

7:13 AM PT -- Kelly has just arrived, flanked by his usual crew as he strutted into the Chi-town courthouse.

R. Kelly is back in a Chicago courthouse for a hearing on the new round of sexual assault and abuse charges he's facing ... and TMZ is streaming live. 

The embattled musician will be present Thursday, along with his attorney, Steven Greenberg, for his arraignment. Greenberg, tells us his client plans to plead not guilty to all 11 charges.

As we reported ... Kelly was hit last week with 11 felonies related to sexual assault and various abuse in Illinois. The Cook County State's Attorney's Office charged him with 5 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, 4 counts of aggravated criminal sexual assault and 2 counts of criminal sexual assault. 

In legal docs, Kelly is accused of forcing contact between his penis and the alleged victim's mouth and committing an act of sexual penetration on a victim listed only as "J.P." The alleged incident occurred in January 2010, when the victim was under the age of 18.

Kelly's crisis manager, Darrell Johnson, had already told us his client denies all accusations and maintains his innocence. Hence, the not guilty plea today.

Thursday's hearing, which is set to begin around 7:30 AM PT, is separate from the 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse Kelly is already facing in Cook County. There are also 3 federal probes underway -- 2 in New York's Eastern and Southern Districts and another in the Northern District of Illinois. 

Originally Published -- 6:44 AM PT

EXCLUSIVE

Wendy Williams' estranged husband is no closer to making amends with their son, Kevin Jr., after the father-son scuffle ... and Kevin Hunter Sr. feels Wendy isn't helping the situation.

Sources close to the family tell TMZ ... Kevin Sr. has made no headway toward patching things up since the fight that ended with Junior's arrest. We're told he's getting iced out, despite several attempts to reach out and talk to his son.

We're told Wendy's ex thinks he and his son should settle their differences on their own -- but he believes Wendy is behind the decision to go radio silent.

We broke the story ... Kevin Jr. was arrested for assault for punching his father in the nose in a New Jersey parking lot after Sr. put him in a headlock. The fight allegedly stemmed from an argument over the divorce, and Kevin demanding spousal support from Wendy.

Hunter told us afterward he loves his son and was not going to pursue the matter legally, and he's committed to fixing the relationship. We're told he understands their son is being protective of his mother through the divorce, but he still wants to make peace.

Meanwhile, Wendy's looking happy to put her ex in her rear view. She was out in L.A. last week, flaunting her huge diamond flower ring and talking biz with TV execs.

She even made an appearance Saturday in L.A. for a Pride event alongside Blac Chyna, who we know Wendy's tight with and has been shadowing as she navigates single life. 

EXCLUSIVE

The saying "silence speaks volumes" couldn't be more true for Linda Fairstein and her book publishers, who've signaled where they stand on the uproar against her ... by remaining silent and doing nothing.

Despite a massive amount of backlash and scrutiny that's forced the D.A.'s former lead investigator on the Central Park Five case to resign from boards of directors -- there have been no consequences for her in the publishing world, where she's made a killing.

TMZ has reached out to multiple people at both Penguin Random House and its subsidiary, Dutton -- two publishing companies that have peddled her 14 novels -- but we haven't heard a peep.

An online push to boycott her publishers and distributors erupted when the Netflix series, "When They See Us" -- about the CP5 case -- premiered last Friday.

We've reached out to 6 different people at both PRH and Dutton, including reps from Linda's literary agency, ICM Partners -- but still ... radio silence.

It's interesting ... Fairstein resigned from her leadership positions at nonprofit Safe Horizon as well as from Vassar College after immense outrage over her role in wrongfully prosecuting and securing convictions against the then-teenagers ... which is captured in Netflix's new "When They See Us."

She was even publicly rebuked by Glamour Magazine, which said it was a mistake to give her the Woman of the Year Award in '93 ... adding they wouldn't do it again.

Still, despite all that ... nothing seems to have changed on the book front, which is where the initial outcry began this weekend. You'll recall ... many, many people called for retailers to yank Fairstein's novels from their shelves, which CP5 exoneree Raymond Santana was down with.

Not only is Fairstein still listed as a featured author on the publishers' websites, her books are still for sale at pretty much all of the places that have been selling 'em. Hmmm ...

EXCLUSIVE

Machine Gun Kelly's goons ganged up on a guy, and beat the hell outta him -- on video -- and now the victim's suing the rapper, claiming he ordered the attack.

We broke the story ... Gabriel "G-Rod" Rodriguez confronted MGK back in September at an Atlanta restaurant and called him a "p***y" because he was pissed about Kelly's beef with Eminem.

Later in the evening at a Hampton Inn, video footage shows G-Rod getting jumped and viciously body slammed, kicked and punched by a bunch of dudes allegedly in MGK's crew. At least 3 of the individuals were ID'd and charged with misdemeanor battery, but cops said MGK was in the clear because he wasn't a part of it.

G-Rod's not letting him get off that easy, though ... and filed suit against the rapper and the 3 other dudes in his crew for battery. According to the docs ... Rodriguez claims Kelly instructed the bodyguards to attack him, and he's suffered serious injuries and medical expenses.

G-Rod's also suing the hotel for negligence in the incident.

As we told you, G-Rod's attorney, Blake Dolman, threatened to pursue legal action if MGK didn't cut his client a check. Guess that never happened.

Dolman tells us ... "Mr. Rodriguez looks forward to his day in court and holding those responsible for this vicious and cowardly attack fully responsible for their actions."

MGK's manager tells TMZ ... "it's a bogus lawsuit and MGK is not liable for what happened."

Breaking News

The criminal investigation into Cristiano Ronaldo's rape allegation is still active, the Las Vegas Metro Police Dept. says. 

Kathryn Mayorga, the woman behind the allegations, had dropped her civil case filed in state court in Nevada earlier this month -- making some people wonder if the two sides had reached a settlement. 

But, Mayorga's attorney, Larissa Drohobyczer, says Kathryn is NOT backing down -- they're simply moving the lawsuit from state court to federal court, where it's easier to sue someone who lives abroad. 

"We basically just switched venues but the claims and lawsuit still remains," Drohobyczer tells TMZ Sports.

In other words, Mayorga's team was having trouble serving Ronaldo with the court papers -- but the laws in federal court are more favorable for a person suing someone who lives out of the country.

Per Drohobyczer, they are still waiting for confirmation from the Italian government that Ronaldo has been served with the lawsuit.

As we previously reported, Mayorga claims Ronaldo raped her in a Las Vegas hotel room back in 2009.

She had initially filed a police report describing the alleged crime -- but didn't identify Ronaldo by name.

In her original lawsuit, Mayorga says she later accepted a $375,000 payment in exchange for her silence -- but now, she wants that agreement voided.

The Las Vegas Metro Police Dept. reopened the case -- but so far, no charges have been brought against the soccer star.

Breaking News

Madonna is slamming a journalist who she claims -- despite faking it as an “intellectual feminist” -- completely botched her Madge profile, and made the icon “feel raped” by the process.

Madonna didn’t pull punches as she went off on the NYT profile that was released Wednesday, calling it “further proof that the N.Y.T is one of the founding fathers of the Patriarchy.” She states that she is sorry she spent even 5 minutes with the author, and that it “makes me feel raped. And yes I’m allowed to use that analogy having been raped at the age of 19.” 

She points out how obsessed the author was with her age, even titling the article “Madonna at 60,” and rages at the fact that would never have been a factor if she were a man.

Madge doesn’t stop there, she also explains how she invited the author – Vanessa Grigoriadis – into her inner sanctum for MONTHS to work on the article, only for her to focus the attention on “trivial and superficial matters such as the ethnicity of my stand in or the fabric of my curtains.”

The final point of the social media tirade is that, while it was a female reporter who attempted to profile the music icon, her work – Madge believes -- is a shining example of how the patriarchy is “woven deep into the fabric of society.” She argues she’s a strong, independent woman, and this female reporter just couldn’t handle it.

One point of the article that Madonna didn't take issue with specifically, was the recounting of her experiences in Hollywood, particularly with disgraced studio mogul Harvey Weinstein, whom she said "crossed lines and boundaries" when they worked on her 1991 documentary, "Truth or Dare." Madonna told the magazine Harvey had been "incredibly sexually flirtatious and forward with me when we were working together."

She added, "I was aware that he did the same with a lot of other women that I knew in the business. We were all 'Harvey gets to do that because he's got so much power and he's so successful and his movies do so well and everybody wants to work with him, so you have to put up with it.'"

We’ve reached out to NYT, who has declined to comment.

12:50 PM PT -- The Broward Sheriff's Office has also fired Peterson for neglecting his duties at the high school on the day of the shooting after an internal investigation.The Broward County Sheriff's Deputy who fled at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when a mass shooting broke out has been arrested for failing to do his job and help limit the carnage ... and he's facing up to 96 years in prison.

Scot Peterson has been arrested and charged in Florida and has been hit with 11 criminal charges stemming from the Parkland shooting on February 14, 2018.

The charges include 7 counts of child neglect, 3 counts of culpable negligence and one count of perjury. This comes after a 14-month investigation where law enforcement interviewed 184 witnesses and reviewed countless hours of surveillance footage.

Peterson's bond has been set at $102k ... but if he posts it he'll be required to wear a GPS monitor, turn in his passport and forfeit any firearms he has.

As we reported ... Peterson was tasked to guard the school, but video shows him running away from danger when 19-year-old gunman Nikolas Cruz opened fire on the school.

He's also been sued by families of the victims.

Originally Published -- 12:36 PM PT

The Golden State Warriors are taking their beef with Drake to new levels, and hitting back where it hurts ... Pusha T.

With Steph Curry warming up on the court at Oracle Arena before Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors ... the pregame playlist featured Pusha T's diss track, "The Story of Adidon." 

As you know ... Drake had MASSIVE BEEF last year with Pusha T, with both rappers going back and forth at each other with diss tracks. Saying things got heated is an understatement. 

So, why are the two-time defending NBA champion Warriors taking shots at Drake??? 

Drake's a HUGE Raptors fan ... and he's been thrusting himself into these Finals with his courtside antics during Games 1 and 2 in Toronto. Dude even got into it with Warriors stud Draymond Green after the Raps took Game 1. 

The Warriors are obviously fed up with Drake ... because after they won Game 2 to even the series, stars Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson heckled him outside their locker room, calling Drake a "bum ass." 

With the series shifting to Oakland for Games 3 and 4 ... the Warriors seem intent on trolling Drake even more. 

EXCLUSIVE

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says she's thrilled the Central Park 5 is getting a renewed spotlight, because it's starting a much-needed convo about injustice ... especially for young people of color.

We got the New York congresswoman Tuesday on Capitol Hill, where we asked about the controversial case that played out in her own backyard in 1989, and the fact it's being depicted in Netflix's new show, "When They See Us," all these years later. 

AOC -- who, btw, wasn't born until 6 months after the Central Park attack -- said she's ecstatic the wrongfully convicted men are having their story told in a thoughtful and captivating way.

She added it's one of many cases that illustrate how the criminal justice system all too often fails black and brown youths.

She took a swipe at President Trump too, who infamously took out a giant newspaper ad days after Trisha Meili, the Central Park jogger, was attacked. The ad called for the death penalty to be reinstated in New York, and publicly convicted the 5 boys before their trial even began.

Rep. Ocasio-Cortez also weighs in on the campaign to #CancelLindaFairstein -- one of the investigators on the case at the time. As AOC puts it ... it's reckoning time.

President Trump wants to make it perfectly clear -- he didn't say Meghan Markle IS nasty ... he said she WAS nasty when she spoke negatively about him.

The Prez was interviewed by Piers Morgan on "Good Morning Britain" Wednesday during his 3-day trip to the UK, and Piers pressed him on his thoughts about the Duchess of Sussex and asked whether he thinks she is, in fact, "nasty."

Trump says no, and explains he didn't know Markle had spoken badly about him in the past ... but he's not surprised. He says when he found out he responded, "Wow, I didn't know she was nasty" ... but meant to essentially say, "I didn't know she was nasty about me."

Got that? Watch the clip ... judge for yourself.

Regardless, the Prez says he hopes Meghan enjoys her life and called her "very nice" before pointing out he doesn't actually know her ... and slamming the media for embellishing the "nasty" controversy.

Then, Piers asked the big question -- was it awkward meeting Prince Harry in the midst of the hullabaloo? Not at all, according to Trump ... but he admits he never addressed the topic with Meghan's royal hubby. He says Harry couldn't have been nicer, though ... and he thinks he's great.

Washed up psycho @BetteMidler was forced to apologize for a statement she attributed to me that turned out to be totally fabricated by her in order to make “your great president” look really bad. She got caught, just like the Fake News Media gets caught. A sick scammer!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 5, 2019

Meanwhile, Trump used his time over the pond to insult Hollywood royalty on Twitter -- Bette Midler. Wonder how it would go if Donald ran into her husband?

EXCLUSIVE

Former NFL WR Jabar Gaffney just cut a deal with prosecutors after his ex-teammate, Lito Sheppard, accused him of wrecking his car ... and he'll avoid jail time if he keeps his nose clean for the next few months.

For the record, Jabar still DENIES the allegations ... saying prosecutors had the wrong guy all along.

Here's the backstory -- Lito says last year, on June 17 ... his 2013 BMW suddenly stopped working in the middle of the road when he was on his way home from a restaurant in Jacksonville.

Sheppard says when he viewed surveillance footage of his car in the restaurant's parking lot ... he claims he saw Gaffney and Gaffney's GF pouring sugar into his gas tank and slashing his tires.

Cops arrested Jabar a few weeks later ... charging him with felony criminal mischief -- and he was facing up to 5 YEARS behind bars for the offense.

But, Gaffney -- who was teammates with Lito in Philadelphia in 2006 -- just cut a deal with prosecutors last month ... agreeing to enter into a pretrial intervention program -- this according to court records and a rep for the state attorney's office. 

Gaffney's attorney, Seth Schwartz, tells TMZ Sports the ex-WR will have to pay around $840 in restitution to Sheppard as part of the deal ... but if he keeps his nose clean for the next 6 months -- the charge will be dropped.

As for Jabar, he adamantly denies he was the man seen on video destroying Lito's car ... saying the guy looks nothing like him.

In fact, Jabar's attorney says in surveillance photos prosecutors relied on to build their case ... there don't appear to be tattoos on the alleged suspect's left neck ... but Jabar is covered in ink.

So, why did Jabar take the deal? Schwartz tells us it would have cost Gaffney thousands of dollars to take the case to trial and fight the charge.

"The cost of trying the case was extreme," Schwartz says ... "But this was a not guilty all day."

Jabar played 11 years in the NFL ... piling up 5,690 receiving yards and 447 career catches. He retired after the 2012 season.