Kellen Winslow II was arrested in connection with an alleged home burglary earlier this week, but the former NFL tight end says the incident stemmed from a misunderstanding.
Denise White, a spokesperson for the agency that represents Winslow, told Dennis Romero of NBC News that Winslow was house hunting for his mother-in-law when a resident from the community he was visiting called the police.
“An over reactive neighbor called police after she saw Kellen walking around a mobile home,” White said.
The neighbor told KGTV in Encinitas, Calif., that Winslow said he was looking for his dog when confronted. She said he was inside the home for about 10 minutes before leaving.
“I confronted him and said ‘Hi, can I help you with anything’,” she said. “He said, ‘Nope, just looking for my dog.’ I go, ‘What dog?’ and he said, ‘Well, it’s a red dog, Clifford.’ and I went, ‘There’s no dog here.’ I said, I’m not comfortable with this, you need to leave. And he just stood there and he went, ‘Alright then.'”
White said Winslow does have a red dog named Clifford, but he was being sarcastic when speaking with the neighbor.
“The owner said he never went inside the home or took anything, or nor was anything taken, touched or moved,” White added.
Winslow’s attorney, Harvey A. Steinberg, said in a statement that the 34-year-old “emphatically denies committing any burglary.”
“He would have no need to burglarize or steal anything from anyone at a trailer park,” Steinberg said. “He looks forward to being vindicated once this matter is fully investigated and adjudicated through the court system.”
Some, including Los Angeles social activist Jasmyne Cannick, have raised the possibility that Winslow was a victim of racial profiling.
“You could be doing the most harmless thing and people will call the police on you,” Cannick said. “Black people — we’ve moved up in the world. When people move up they move out to nicer neighborhoods. In those neighborhoods they get looked at as if they don’t belong.”
Winslow was drafted by the Cleveland Browns with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. His best season was in 2007 when he made the Pro Bowl, but he went on to have a somewhat rough career after that. Winslow, the son of Hall of Fame tight end Kellen Winslow, last played for the New York Jets in 2013, and nothing ever came of the announcement he made more than two years ago.
