Photo: US Marshals
Former NFL All-Pro wide receiver Antonio Brown was arrested on attempted murder charges on Thursday (November 6) stemming from an incident that took place at a celebrity boxing event in Miami earlier this year, police confirmed via ESPN.
Brown, 37, was detained by U.S. Marshals in Dubai and flown to Essex County, New Jersey, where he was held ahead of pending extradition to Miami, according to Miami Police Department spokesperson Mike Vega. It's unclear why the former All-Pro wide receiver was initially taken to New Jersey or how long he was in Dubai prior to his arrest, though he had shared several posts from the United Arab Emirates in recent months.
Brown is accused of grabbing a handgun from a security staffer and firing two shots at a man who he had previously been involved in a fistfight with at a boxing event hosted by streamer Adin Ross on the night of May 16. The victim, identified as Zul-Qarnain Kwame Nantambu, told investigators that his neck was grazed by one of the bullets.
Brown was previously wanted for attempted murder in relation to the incident in June. A video shared online showed Brown involved in a fight with several people before jogging off while exiting a garage and gunshots were heard off-camera at the end of the video.
Miami Police Department spokesperson Kiara Delva previously told USA TODAY Sports Network that her department received an alert from the gunshot detection system ShotSpotter at around 3:00 a.m. local time at the location of an event hosted by Ross. Officers launched an investigation that "included canvassing the area and interviewing several individuals," though Delva couldn't confirm the names of the individuals who were present at the scene when the incident took place at the time.
Brown appeared on a livestream with Ross shortly after the incident and claimed he couldn't remember what happened.
"Yeah I got CTE, I blacked out," Brown said. "I blacked out, Adin. I don’t know what happened.
Brown, once regarded by many as the NFL's best wide receiver, has been at the center of numerous issues on and off the field in recent years. In June 2023, the Albany Empire announced plans to sue him over unpaid finances during his three month. long ownership.
In December 2022, an arrest warrant was issued to Brown by the Tampa Police Department in relation to a misdemeanor battery domestic violence charge, which was later dropped by the Florida State Attorney's Office. In April 2021, Attorney David Hass announced that Brown's legal dispute with gymnast Britney Taylor dating back to 2019 was settled in a joint statement with a representative for Brown, Alana Burstyn, obtained by NBC News.
Taylor sued Brown alleging he sexually assaulted her three times while she was working as his personal trainer. The wide receiver denied the allegations and later countersued Taylor, claiming her initial lawsuit stemmed from his refusal to invest more than $1.5 million in her gymnastics business.
In January 2022, Brown was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers one day after a strange incident in which he stripped off his uniform and ran off the field during the team's game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium.
Brown was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers at No. 196 overall in the sixth-round of the 2010 NFL Draft and quickly emerged as a perennial Pro Bowl selection before demanding a trade amid a contract dispute prior to the 2019 season.
The Miami native was later cut by Pittsburgh's trade partner, the then-Oakland Raiders, prior to ever appearing in a regular-season game.
Brown spent several games in 2019 with the New England Patriots and two seasons with the Buccaneers, with both tenures ending in controversy. The 35-year-old was a four-time First-team All-Pro (2014-17), a Second-team All-Pro in 2013 and a seven time Pro Bowl selection (2011, 2013-18), having led all NFL players in receiving yards twice (2014, 2017), receptions twice (2014, 2015) and receiving touchdowns in 2018.