Metro Detroit tattoo artist acquitted of sexually assaulting client

A Wayne County jury has acquitted a Metro Detroit tattoo artist accused of inappropriate sexual contact with a client.

After a three-day jury trial, Alexander Boyko was acquitted of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct charges for allegedly sexually assaulting a client in 2015 in Plymouth, according to court records. The charges have been pending since 2019.

Though all three charges related to one woman, two other women were allowed to testify about Boyko behaving sexually inappropriate toward them, said Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Maria Miller.

Boyko wasn't charged in those situations, but the women were able to testify as "other acts" witnesses, where a judge allows them to testify to show motive, opportunity and intent — but not as evidence that their character makes them more likely to have committed the crime, Miller said.

"The victim understandably (is) disappointed in the jury’s verdict but was glad that she was able to testify and have her day in court," Miller said.

Boyko's attorney, Vassal Johnson, didn't respond to a request for comment. Boyko declined to comment, instead directing a reporter to a statement he made on Instagram.

"Thank you to all my supporters and anyone who has believed in me the past few years while this was all going on," he wrote, posting it on an Instagram highlight asking another tattoo artist to say he was sorry for starting rumors about him.

"By the way, no technicalities," Boyko wrote, referencing social media posts saying he was acquitted on a technicality. "No evidence. In fact the jury and everyone in the court, the police officers involved, ALL found it to be b------t."

In a video posted on the same highlight, he accused people of lying and threatened lawsuits against people involved in the case, singing "we're going to get that money."

He also criticized people for "weaponiz(ing) sexual assault" and said people turned the allegations against him into a smear campaign.

Boyko was the subject of a 2018 investigation by Jezebel, where seven woman accused him of sexual misconduct.

In 2018, Boyko sued three tattoo artists who were alleging on social media that he sexually harassed and assaulted his clients. He sued the artists for defamation and for interfering with his business. The lawsuit was dismissed in April 2019 after Boyko didn't properly prepare a pretrial order, but that dismissal was reversed by the Court of Appeals in February 2021.

Wayne County Judge David Allen again dismissed the case in October 2021, after one of the tattoo artists filed a motion with the court noting that Boyko had not made any effort to continue to pursue the matter.

kberg@detroitnews.com