Atlanta Falcons linebacker Barkevious Mingo has been arrested in suburban Dallas for allegedly having inappropriate sexual contact with a child.
Mingo surrendered to police in Arlington, Texas, after a warrant was issued for his arrest. The former New England Patriot was charged with indecency with a “child, sexual contact,” according to WSB-TV.
BREAKING: @ArlingtonPD arrested @AtlantaFalcons linebacker Barkevious Mingo on one count of Indecency w/ a child, sexual contact on Thursday. Mingo surrendered to authorities and posted a $25 K bond. @wsbtv pic.twitter.com/HLb6S2FmhM
— Michael Seiden (@SeidenWSBTV) July 10, 2021
The television station said the Falcons released a statement.
“Our organization became aware of the allegations involving Barkevious Mingo today and are currently gathering information on this incident. The Falcons take the allegations very seriously and will continue to monitor the situation.”
Lukas Garcia, Mingo’s attorney with Chris Lewis + Associates, said his client will be exonerated.
“The allegations out of Tarrant County against my client are completely baseless. Barkevious Mingo is innocent. At this stage, our side has very limited information. What we do know is these allegations are from over two years ago and are completely untrue. Mr. Mingo is the victim of a false claim, and we believe this is motivated by money or some other ulterior motive. We are confident when the truth comes to light, my client will be fully exonerated,” Garcia said.
According to Sports Illustrated, which has a copy of the police complaint, Mingo allegedly invited two teen boys out on a trip to Six Flags in Texas in July of 2019 and then treated them both to gifts and meals afterward. Later, they all returned to his hotel room where Mingo allegedly molested one of the boys.
Mingo has spent eight seasons in the NFL with seven different teams, including the Patriots, Browns, Colts, Seahawks, Texans and Bears before coming to the Falcons this past year.
