Olympic athlete Fred Kerley was arrested Thursday night and several videos of the encounter went viral.
Body camera footage showed the 2024 bronze medalist being Tasered by police, while another angle showed one officer throwing punches while others restrained Kerley.
Kerley was taken into custody after police said he became agitated while trying to reach his car, which was near the scene of an active police investigation.
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Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Fred Kerley (Image)
Bodycam footage obtained by TMZ Sports shows Kerley speaking to police before turning to another officer, who placed a hand on Kerley’s chest, which Kerley rejected. The officer then pushed Kerley with his other hand before chaos ensued.
Former Miami Marlins star Jazz Chisholm Jr., who now plays for the New York Yankees, criticized police for their actions.
“Miami Beach police are always looking for a way to put there [sic] Let’s get to work athletes! “I’m sorry this happened to you, Fred!” Chisholm posted on X.
Kerley faces charges of assault on a police officer, correctional officer or firefighter; resisting an officer without violence; and disorderly conduct. He was released on his own recognizance.
Fred Kerley (USA) in a men’s 100 meters round one during the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics at the Stade de France. (Andrew Nelles/USA Today Sports)
Kerley’s arrest Thursday led him to face domestic violence and robbery charges for an incident in May, when police issued a probable cause alert to their system. According to an arrest affidavit obtained by Pak Gazette Digital, Kerley and his wife got into a verbal and then physical dispute in May, on his birthday, when Kerley’s wife was in contact with an “unknown person on Instagram.”
Kerley, the affidavit says, aggressively approached his wife and she hit him out of fear, according to the affidavit. Kerley then allegedly “grabbed the victim, pushed her to the ground, put his arm around her neck and prevented her from breathing.”
The affidavit says Kerley then stole his wife’s cell phone after applying a second chokehold. Kerley was not present when authorities arrived and witnesses were uncooperative, police said.
The woman Kerley was with on Thursday, Cleo Rahman, was also apparently arrested, and the two are said to be dating. Rahman wrote “free my man” as the title of the video of the officer punching Kerley.
“So when we were trying to get close to our car, the police officer decided to push my boyfriend out of the way, and a big fiasco started,” Rahman, a rapper who goes by the name DJ Sky High Baby, told NBC. Miami. “We were just trying to get to the car. We weren’t trying to obstruct justice or anything like that. It’s crazy to the extent that it took four police officers to try to stop him. It was absolutely crazy.” “
Fred Kerley (USA) reacts after competing in a men’s 100 meters semi-final during the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics at the Stade de France. (Yukihito Taguchi/USA Today Sports)
Kerley won a bronze medal in Paris this summer in the 100 meters, while teammate Noah Lyles won his first Olympic gold. Kerley won the 2022 world championship in the event and silver at the Tokyo Olympics, and also has world championships in the 4×400-meter relay in 2019 and the 4×100-meter relay in 2023.
Kerley was part of the 4×100 meters team in Paris that was disqualified due to a botched handover. Noah Lyles planned to be part of that team but fell ill with COVID, which contributed to him falling short in the 200 meters, an event in which he was the big favorite.
