Seahawks star defensive end Michael Bennett took to Twitter on Wednesday morning to relay the story of him being thrown to the ground, having a gun pointed at his head, and being unjustly detained by police in Las Vegas following the Mayweather-McGregor fight two weeks ago and suggested racial profiling was to blame. Video released first by TMZ Sports and later by the LVPD corroborated Bennett’s account of what happened.
On Wednesday night, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell weighed in on Bennett’s unfortunate encounter with the Las Vegas Police Department after the Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor fight. The embattled commissioner released a statement through the NFL’s spokesman Brian McCarthy via Twitter, Goodell stated that the Seahawks DE was a “leader on his team and in his community.”
.@nflcommish statement on Michael Bennett pic.twitter.com/OZkF18g079
— Brian McCarthy (@NFLprguy) September 6, 2017
“Our first concern is Michael and his family,” Goodell relayed in the statement. “While we understand that the Las Vegas police department will address this later this evening, the issues Michael has been raising deserve serious attention from all of our leaders in every community. We will support Michael and all NFL players in promoting mutual respect between law enforcement and the communities they loyally serve and fair and equal treatment under the law”
Kevin McMahill, the Undersheriff of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police department, spoke at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon and said the officer who initially detained Bennett did not turn his body camera on. He also denied there any chance that Bennett was being racially profiled as the officers who detained Bennett were hispanic. McMahill also stated that there are 126 more videos to go through to complete the investigation.
Bennett, who was among those that have sat or kneeled in protest during the national anthem this NFL preseason, has obtained legal counsel in order to determine if a lawsuit is in order.
