Britney Spears’ ‘Criminal’ tops charts following Justin Timberlake’s arrest

Britney Spears (left) and Justin Timberlake | Photo: Instagram/@ britneyspears, SAG HARBOR POLICE DEPARTMENT / AFP

Following Justin Timberlake’s arrest for DWI (driving while intoxicated), Britney Spears’ fans saw an opportunity to drive the latter’s 2011 song “Criminal” back up the charts.

Spears’ fans took to X (formerly Twitter) to encourage each other to listen and buy the singer’s Femme Fatale studio album hit “Criminal,” which was originally released in September 2011.

As of this writing, Spears’ song entered today’s Top 100, at No. 59 on the iTunes chart in the US. The song also landed at No. 1 on the same platform in Brazil and Mexico, hours after Timberlake’s arrest.

Fans also brought back Timberlake’s old video allegedly telling Spears to stop drinking, while accepting a BRIT Award.

“Stop drinking! You know who you are. I’m speaking to you. You are going to get sloppy. OK! magazine is going to say something bad about you,” said Timberlake in the now viral clip.

In the 2000s, Spears and Timberlake dated for three years and became an A-list couple. Their breakup drove a media frenzy then, and recently Spears revealed in her memoir “The Woman in Me” that she terminated her pregnancy because Timberlake “didn’t want to be a father” at the time.

Criminal by Britney Spears is now the #1 song on iTunes Mexico. 🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/C0Np0Utoyx

— Fan Account (@breatheonmiley) June 19, 2024

The “Sometimes” singer asserted that her pregnancy wasn’t a “tragedy,” as she always “expected to build a family with Timberlake,” but the latter’s reluctance led to the abortion.

“Justin definitely wasn’t happy about the pregnancy. He said we weren’t ready to have a baby in our lives and that we were way too young,” said Spears.

“If it had been left up to me alone, I never would have done it. And yet Justin was so sure that he didn’t want to be a father,” added the pop icon.

“To this day, it’s one of the most agonizing things I have ever experienced in my life,” continued Spears, referring to the abortion.

On Tuesday, June 18 (EST), Timberlake was taken into custody in Sag Harbor for “operating his vehicle in an intoxicated condition.”

The “Cry Me a River” singer spent the night in jail before being arraigned and released the morning after. His next court date is scheduled via virtual appearance on July 26.