Twin brothers Marcus and Markieff Morris have been accused of assaulting a man over a series of text messages that were allegedly sent to their mother. We first heard about the incident in January, but details have just now emerged.
The Morris brothers, both 25, have denied the allegations. According to Matthew Casey of The Arizona Republic, police say Marcus, Markieff and three other men committed felony aggravated assault against a man named Erik Hood after learning that he had sent “inappropriate” text messages to their mom.
The case is currently under investigation and no charges have been filed.
Hood, a former professional basketball player who is now a scout, claims he was a mentor to the Morris twins when they were in high school and helped their family financially. He told police that he simply texted the Morris twins’ mother, Thomasine Morris, to let her know he would “always be there” for her, but someone who saw the message drew the conclusion that Hood and Thomasine are having sexual relations with one another.
Hood told investigators that he and a woman he was with were leaving a complex in Arizona where they were watching a basketball game when they were first attacked by 25-year-old Julius Kane, the man Hood believes told the Morris twins about the text. Here’s more from Casey:
During the confrontation, someone punched Hood in the back of the head, and Hood tried to flee.
Police said Kane and another person caught up with Hood outside the door near some picnic tables, where someone held Hood down while others kicked and punched him, records show. Hood says he was attacked by five people, in all.
Hood reportedly escaped a second time and was near the front of the complex when the group caught up to him and assaulted him again to the point of unconsciousness, according to the police report.
Witnesses told police they saw the five subjects flee in a Rolls-Royce Phantom, but none of them were able to identify any of the subjects. Investigators reportedly interviewed about two dozen additional witnesses who said they did not see anything or could not identify those involved.
Hood suffered a broken nose and was left with a large lump on the back of his head. He told police he was able to identify Kane and the Morris twins as three of his five attackers. Markieff denied having any involvement in the attack but admitted that he and Marcus were at the game because they sponsor one of the teams that was playing.
Both of the Morris twins have displayed their fair share of aggressive behavior on the court. Earlier this season, Marcus was seen exploding on Suns coach Jeff Hornacek during a team huddle. Last month, Markieff was ejected for this hard foul on Goran Dragic.
H/T The Big Lead
