Police: Brown locked himself in home amid investigation
Free agent wide receiver Antonio Brown locked himself in his house and was avoiding police attempts to contact him Wednesday morning amid an investigation into an alleged battery incident, according to the Hollywood (Florida) Police Department.
According to USA Today, public information officer Christian Lata said police have tried to reach Brown but have been unsuccessful. Police expect to have more information later Wednesday, as they look into an alleged incident that occurred Tuesday near Brown's home.
Brown, 31, is a suspect in an alleged incident involving a moving truck and its driver, who said he was the victim of battery by Brown's trainer, Glenn Holt, and Brown himself. Holt was arrested and charged with one count of burglary with battery, and he was arraigned at the Broward County Jail on Tuesday, according to Lata.
Brown has not been arrested or charged, but police say the investigation is active.
He tweeted on Wednesday morning, "They want my name slandered."
Later Wednesday, TMZ reported more details from the incident, citing court documents. Per TMZ, the truck driver told police he was delivering Brown's belongings from California, but that Brown would not pay the $4,000 cost for the moving services. As he started to drive away, the driver said Brown threw a rock at the truck and dented it. The driver then called the police.
The driver said Brown eventually paid the $4,000 but would not pay additional money for damage to the truck, which led to an argument and a physical altercation. The driver said Brown forced his way into the truck cabin and hit him, and that Holt later took the truck keys from the driver so that Brown could unload his property.
TMZ reported that Brown went in his house as police arrived and has since been unresponsive.
The oft-controversial wide receiver played in just one game this season after being cut by two teams, most recently the New England Patriots.
After a trade to the Oakland Raiders last offseason, Brown was released toward the end of training camp after continued conflict with the organization that started when his helmet was considered to no longer be in compliance with NFL safety rules.
He was released by the Patriots after sexual and personal misconduct accusations were made against him. Brown reportedly was brought in for a workout with the New Orleans Saints in December, but he called that opportunity a "publicity stunt."
Last week, Brown's former agent Drew Rosenhaus announced he had "conditionally" terminated his relationship with Brown until the wide receiver sought professional help. The move came in the wake of Brown posting a live social-media feed of an encounter with Hollywood police where he used explicit language and called officers explicit names as authorities were responding to a domestic incident at Brown's home.
--Field Level Media
