Former NBA player Sebastian Telfair was arrested early Sunday morning on gun-related charges. Telfair was the 13th overall pick in the 2004 draft and was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers. In his 12 year career, Telfair played for 7 teams and last played for the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2014-15 NBA season.
Following from Jonathan Dienst and Ida Siegal of NBC New York.
Telfair, 32, and another man, Jami Thomas, 18, were found with four loaded weapons, ammunition and a bullet-resistant vest, police said. Two bags of marijuana were also allegedly found in the 2017 Ford F-150 pickup.
They were parked on the median on Atlantic Avenue near Classon Street, said police.
As officers approached, they started to drive off, according to the source. Police who pulled them over smelled marijuana and saw a lit “blunt” on the dashboard, police said.
Subsequently, this isn’t the first time Telfair has run into gun-related charges and even was disciplined by the NBA in the past.
Telfair and a friend were arrested in 2007 on a gun charge after a traffic stop. He was stopped for speeding on the Bronx River Parkway, then found to be driving with a suspended license. Police found a .45 caliber handgun under the passenger seat. Both Telfair and his friend said they didn’t know how the gun got there.
Telfair pleaded guilty in 2008 to criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced to three years of probation. The NBA suspended him for three games.
