Photo Courtesy of NFL
Trevor Bates
By Forum Staff
A National Football League player has been charged with assaulting a City Police sergeant inside the 115th Precinct stationhouse following an arrest for allegedly refusing to pay a $32 fare for a taxi ride, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said on Saturday.
Trevor Bates, 25, has been charged with second-degree assault, obstructing governmental administration, theft of services, and resisting arrest.
According to the charges, on Saturday morning around 1:30 a.m., the police responded to a call from a yellow taxi driver. The driver was at the Hampton Inn on Ditmars Boulevard in East Elmhurst, and said that his passenger did not want to pay his $32 fare. Bates was placed under arrest and transported back to the 115th Precinct stationhouse. While at the precinct, the Maine native was informed that as long as there were no outstanding warrants, he would receive a DAT (desk appearance ticket) and then be allowed to leave. At which time, Bates refused to be fingerprinted and became increasingly agitated. As NYPD Sgt. James O’Brien attempted to calm him down, Bates punched him in the face and need to be tasered in order to be subdued.
Selected in the seventh round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts, Bates, a linebacker, spent the 2018 NFL season with the Detroit Lions. He has also played for the New England Patriots and was a member of the New York Giants practice squad in 2017.
If convicted, Bates faces up to seven years in prison.
