TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Detroit Lions player Terrion Arnold has been arrested in connection to a kidnapping and robbery in Florida and faces felony charges, officials said Wednesday.
Arnold, 23, is accused of being the “primary conspirator” before three men in their late teens were held at gunpoint, battered and pistol-whipped in February in Tampa, the city’s police department said in a statement. Some of their belongings were stolen, police said.
Arnold is facing four counts of a weapon-related charge and four more counts of a charge related to kidnapping, harming or terrorizing, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office arrest records.
Tampa police had already arrested six others suspected of being part of the targeted armed robbery. Two of them have pleaded guilty and the other four are being held without bond, according to the Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office.
Denise White, CEO of EAG Sports Management, which represents Arnold, said he denies being involved.
“There is no credible evidence linking Mr. Arnold to these allegations,” White said in a statement. “Instead, the government appears to be relying on testimony from multiple convicted felons who have admitted their own involvement and may have substantial incentives to shift blame in an effort to lessen their sentences.”
In early February, Arnold and a few of his friends had reported more than $250,000 worth of their property being stolen from an Airbnb in Largo, police said.
Arnold believed that two men in their late teens had been behind it, although investigators later determined this was not the case, police said.
Hours after reporting the theft, Arnold orchestrated the kidnapping and robbery, according to the State Attorney’s Office.
Arnold and his friends worked to get the men, along with another, to an apartment on Feb. 4, police said. Initially, two of Arnold’s friends held them at gunpoint and hit them, while another streamed it to Arnold, police said. Later, when the assault was still going on, Arnold also came to the apartment, police said. His other friends stole some of the victims’ belongings, police said.
The victims reported the robbery to police.
“No one has the right to take the law into their own hands,” State Attorney Suzy Lopez said in a statement. “A dispute over missing property does not justify kidnapping, violence, or retaliation.”
Arnold is a starting cornerback for the Detroit Lions who was a first-round pick in the 2024 draft after playing at the University of Alabama. He is from Florida.
The Lions said in a statement Wednesday night that they were aware of the situation but would not be commenting at this time.
“Arnold is facing multiple felony charges which carry a potential sentence of up to life in prison,” according to the Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office.
Arnold turned himself in to law enforcement on Wednesday. He is expected to make his first appearance in Hillsborough County court Thursday afternoon, according to the State Attorney’s Office.