Former College Football Player, Current NFL Draft Hopeful Facing Big Charges

Tavion Thomas played running back for Utah the last few seasons

Former college football running back and current NFL Draft hopeful Tavion Thomas has been arrested and is facing three felony charges, according to reports.

The charges arise from some serious allegations against the former Utah football star from a woman who alleges he threatened her with a knife, took her phone and car keys away, and said that if she called for help, she would be "dead before the police arrive."

Thomas was booked at Salt Lake Co. (Utah) jail last week and was being held without bail.

This is the most recent occasion that Thomas has been accused of being "violent or a threat to women" in the last six months, according to police reports.

He is also facing domestic violence charges involving another woman in a different town in Utah.

Thomas' girlfriend appeared in court on Tuesday and argued that he should be released from jail, saying he requires treatment for bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder.

"He mainly needs to get back into his counseling," she said, according to the report, "anger management, therapy, and get back on his medication.

"But I do not believe he is a danger to me. I don't believe with my mind, body, and soul that he would hurt me purposefully. I just know with the conditions he suffers with he can't control it sometimes."

Prosecutors argued that Thomas be held without bail, claiming that his "violent conduct poses a serious threat to the current and future safety of his victims and the community at large."

Thomas' attorney insists that the former Utes running back is innocent.

"Tavion vehemently denies the allegations contained in the information filed by the State and maintains his innocence," Skye Lazaro, his attorney, and the player's agent, Jimmy Gould, said in a statement.

(Tribune)

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