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TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Detroit Lions starting cornerback Terrion Arnold has been arrested and is accused of being the ringleader in an armed robbery and kidnapping in Florida, and state prosecutors plan to charge him with multiple felonies.
Three men in their late teens were held at gunpoint, battered, pistol-whipped and robbed in Tampa on Feb. 4, and the 23-year-old Arnold was the “primary conspirator,” the Tampa Police Department said in a statement Wednesday.
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Arnold surrendered to authorities Wednesday and is slated to appear in Hillsborough County court Thursday afternoon.
The Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office posted on X that prosecutors will charge Arnold with “multiple felony charges which carry a potential sentence of up to life in prison.” Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office arrest records show he faces four counts of a weapon-related charge and four charges related to kidnapping, harming or terrorizing.
Six other suspects were arrested. Two of them pleaded guilty and the others are being held without bond, prosecutors said.
The Lions declined to comment on Arnold’s arrest Wednesday night. Arnold was a first-round pick in the 2024 draft after playing at the University of Alabama. He comes from Florida.
Arnold denies being involved, according to Denise White, the CEO of EAG Sports Management agency that represents him.
“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.”
Arnold and some friends reported in February that more than $250,000 worth of their property had been stolen from an Airbnb in Largo, police said. Largo is about 20 miles (30 kilometers) west of Tampa.
Arnold told authorities two teens were behind the robbery but investigators determined this was not the case, police said.
The State Attorney’s Office said Arnold orchestrated the kidnapping and robbery, apparently in retaliation, just hours after reporting the burglary.
The teens told police that Arnold’s friends lured them to an apartment, held them at gunpoint and hit them, all the while streaming the attack to Arnold. The footballer later arrived at the apartment, and his friends stole some of the teens’ belongings, police said
“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.”
