Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Anthony Chickillo was arrested after allegedly assaulting his girlfriend during an argument over gambling at a resort in southwestern Pennsylvania, court records show.
Chickillo, a 26-year-old backup outside linebacker, was arrested early Sunday after state police responded to the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, where Chickillo and girlfriend Alysha Newman gave investigators differing versions of events leading up to the dispute, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Newman, according to a state police report, said she and Chickillo began arguing at the Lady Luck Casino inside the resort before returning to their room, where the disagreement continued and turned physical. Newman is a star pole vaulter who competed in the Olympics in 2016 and won gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Chickillo said Newman hit him first, striking him in the head, leading the 6-foot-3, 255-pound linebacker to push her to the floor. Newman, in turn, claimed that Chickillo grabbed her “by the biceps and forced her against a wall and door” at the hotel, leaving her with visible injuries.
That prompted Newman to punch Chickillo in the head and he responded by throwing her to the floor, she told police.
Newman, who attended the University of Miami with Chickillo, claimed the linebacker also smashed her $900 cellphone before she locked herself in a bathroom and waited for cops to respond, according to PennLive.com.
Chickillo, who has missed the bulk of the season with a foot injury, later admitted to pushing Newman down during the incident, a state trooper wrote in an affidavit.
The five-year NFL veteran was released on $10,000 bail after being charged with simple assault, property damage and harassment, court records show. He’s scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on Oct. 30.
Team officials are aware of Chickillo’s arrest, and he was not with the team Monday in their first practice after their Week 7 bye.
“He has been instructed to not be in the building Monday as we continue to gather more information and work with the NFL Office,” team spokesman Burt Lauten said Monday.
— With Mollie Walker
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