Accusations Levied at Bucs' Antonio Brown; Tampa Bay, Brown Make Statement
Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown was accused of destroying a surveillance camera in his Hollywood (Fla.) gated community and throwing a bicycle at a security guard shack on Oct. 15, according to a police report obtained and shared by the Miami Herald.
Per the Herald, police had probable cause to charge Brown with misdemeanor criminal mischief should the Hollywood Oaks homeowners association president had chosen to do so. She declined to press charges in fear that Brown “may retaliate against her employees," the report said.
The same HOA president, Sylvia Berman, made light of the incident when pressed by the Herald on Monday. Sharing that Brown agreed to replace the camera and that the incident was too minor to press charges, Berman added "I am not sure who is trying to promote this narrative.”
Brown shared via his spokesperson in a statement that he "regrets that he lost his cool that day and he has made amends with the HOA. However, he is rightly concerned that he is routinely targeted by some people for mistreatment and undue scrutiny because he is Antonio Brown. He wants to be a good neighbor, good citizen and a good teammate.’’
The Buccaneers have released the following statement in regards to the report:
"We are aware of the reported incident involving Antonio Brown prior to his signing. When Antonio joined us, we were clear about what we expected and required of him. Thus far, he has met all the expectations we have in place."
This is the latest off-the-field incident of Brown's to make headlines over the last two years. Brown has been accused of sexual assault and rape with a civil lawsuit still pending, and was additionally suspended for the first eight games of the 2020 season after pleading no contest to a battery charge from an incident with a truck driver in January 2020. Brown is currently serving two years of probation for the battery incident.
The Herald shared in its report, according to a Broward State Attorney’s Office spokeswoman, that no police agency has suggested that October's incident violated the terms of Brown's current probation.
When Brown signed with the Buccaneers in October, head coach Bruce Arians said that he believed in second chances and that Brown had "matured". This came about seven months after Arians shared with the media that the Bucs had no intention of signing Brown, claiming he wasn't a fit.
In two appearances with Tampa Bay, Brown has caught ten passes for 100 yards.
