Police say Chiefs’ Rice a suspect in assault weeks after crash arrest
- Dallas police say receiver suspected of nightclub assault
- Player also faces charges over high-speed crash in March
Kansas City Chiefs receiver Rashee Rice is suspected of assault in Dallas a little over a month after he was one of the speeding drivers in a chain-reaction crash that led to multiple charges, according to a newspaper report on Tuesday.
Law enforcement officials told the Dallas Morning News that Rice was suspected of assaulting a person at a downtown nightclub early on Monday, and that the person went to a hospital after the encounter.
Officers were dispatched to the nightclub about 2.30am on Monday over a report of an assault, and the victim went to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Rice's attorney, Royce West, didn't respond to a message from the Associated Press seeking comment. The Chiefs and the NFL declined to comment.
Rice reported to the Chiefs for voluntary workouts last month, when Chiefs coach Andy Reid said he had spoken to the receiver and the team was letting the legal process play out.
The former SMU and Dallas-area high school player reported to the Chiefs shortly after turning himself into Dallas police over multiple charges, including aggravated assault, involving the high-speed crash.
West has previously acknowledged Rice was speeding in a Lamborghini SUV when the crash involving six vehicles happened on 30 March. Police said Theodore Knox, who also played for SMU, was driving a Corvette.
Rice, who turned 24 last month, and Knox have been charged with one count of aggravated assault, one count of collision involving serious bodily injury and six counts of collision involving injury.
Four people were injured in the crash, and police said the occupants of the Lamborghini and Corvette left the scene without providing information or determining whether anyone needed medical attention.
Rice was drafted in the second round by Kansas City last year and played in 20 games, including the Chiefs' 25-22 overtime victory over San Francisco in the Super Bowl. He led the team with seven touchdowns catches in the regular season.