Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay Jr. was arrested Wednesday night in connection with a misdemeanor criminal damage case, according to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, via KCTV. The 23-year-old was arrested around 10:30 p.m. in Overland Park, Kansas, and booked into the Johnson County Detention Center, where he is scheduled for arraignment on Thursday afternoon.
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Gay’s representative, Maxx Lepselter, said he was visiting his son. Gay and his son’s mother got into an argument, during which he broke her vacuum.
“No one was touched … beyond the broken appliance,” said Lepselter.
Gay was charged with destruction of property of less than $1,000. Per a District Court of Johnson County affidavit (via NFL.com), the damaged property included the vacuum, a wall and door frame. The affidavit also states that the class B non-person misdemeanor “constitutes a domestic violence offense.”
Gay is in his second season with the Chiefs after the club drafted him in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Mississippi State. He started in 11 of his 12 games played this season and tallied 48 tackles while defending four passes and recording two interceptions. Last week against the Steelers, however, Gay logged his lowest snap count of the season, playing in just 25% of the defensive snaps.
Kansas City is set to host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs. If the Chiefs advance, it would mark their fourth consecutive conference championship appearance. Given these circumstances, Gay’s status for that playoff matchup is currently unclear.
This story will continue to be updated once more information comes to light.
