Former NBA player Ben Gordon was arrested at LaGuardia Airport in New York on Monday night for allegedly hitting his 10-year-old son, and more details of the allegations have since surfaced.
According to TMZ, an American Airlines employee who witnessed the alleged incident told the Port Authority Police Department that he or she saw Gordon hit his son “in the face multiple times” after the boy dropped a book. When police arrived, Gordon told them the boy was his son. The child was taken to a local hospital to be examined for injuries.
Police say Gordon then resisted when they attempted to take him into custody. The 6-foot-3 former lottery pick allegedly flailed his arms and twisted his body while telling officers, “I am not going with you guys.” Two officers were taken to the hospital for treatment after one sustained a knee injury and the other suffered arm and wrist injuries.
Authorities later learned that Gordon was not supposed to be with his son in New York due to a restraining order in Illinois from 2018. Police say the order prohibited Gordon from physically disciplining his son in addition to taking him outside the state of Illinois.
Gordon was arraigned on Tuesday night in the Queens County Criminal Court. He is facing nine charges. TMZ listed them as follows:
– Assault in second degree (two counts)
– Criminal contempt
– Assault in third degree
– Resisting Arrest
– Criminal Contempt in second degree
– Endangering the welfare of a child
– Attempted assault in third degree
Gordon, 39, played in the NBA from 2004-2015. The former No. 3 overall pick was named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year as a rookie with the Chicago Bulls. He was arrested in 2017 for a bizarre fire alarm incident at his apartment. Gordon was arrested later that year for felony robbery.
Gordon opened up in 2020 about mental health issues he had been facing.
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