Five Rutgers football players arrested, charged with assault
Five Rutgers football players were arrested Thursday in New Jersey on charges stemming from an April 25 assault.
NJ.com reports current players Andre Boggs, Ruhann Peele, Nadir Barnwell, Rahzonn Gross and Delon Stephenson were charged after allegedly attacking a group of at least four people. A 19-year old male student suffered a broken jaw during the attack, according to police. Also charged are two former Rutgers players: Stephenson's brother Daryl, and Tejay Johnson.
“The students involved are currently suspended from our program,'' Rutgers athletic director Julie Hermann said in a statement. "We continue to monitor the situation. We will have no further comment as this is a pending legal matter.”
The players have also been placed on interim suspension from the university, Rutgers said in a university statement Friday. They are allowed to appeal the suspension.
“We have a speedy, but fair, review process that looks at the nature of actions taken by students that are illegal or that otherwise violate our code of student conduct. Our initial review indicates that, in these cases, the alleged behavior warrants an interim suspension until additional information becomes available,” Rutgers chancellor Richard L. Edwards said.
Barnwell, one of the arrested players, remains at the center of an investigation into whether Rutgers coach Kyle Flood broke school policy. The coach contacted a faculty member via email about the academically ineligible junior cornerback's grades. Flood reportedly defied academic staff in reaching out to the professor. Depending on the investigation's findings, Flood could reportedly face suspension or be fired.
• MORE: Flood defied Rutgers academic staff, emailed professor
Before the players' charges were announced, Flood told reporters he was confident he would coach the team's season opener on Saturday against Norfolk State.
A press release from the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office also indicates Boggs, a sophomore cornerback, was also arrested on charges of robbery, burglary while armed, and conspiracy to commit an armed robbery after being linked to an April 27 home invasion. Boggs, along with Johnson, allegedly forced their way into a home with a bat and a knife and robbed another student of approximately $900 and an undisclosed amount of marijuana, according to the release.
Boggs was also allegedly involved in a second home invasion May 5 and charged with robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery and attempted burglary while armed. Police say he and Johnson attempted to force their way into a dormitory at Livingston College in Piscataway, N.J.
- Jeremy Woo
