Prosecutors in Florida said Friday they are charging New York Giants cornerback DeAndre Baker with four counts of robbery with a firearm related to an alleged incident at May house party, while announcing they are not filing criminal charges against Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar.
The announcement was made by Broward State Attorney Michael Satz. His office said in a written announcement that Baker “is accused of stealing cash and watches from four men at a house party” in Miramar, Florida, and faces up to life in state prison if convicted, with a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for robbery with a firearm.
The NFL put Baker and Dunbar on paid administrative leave July 27, the day before veteran players for most NFL teams reported to training camps, by placing them on the commissioner’s exempt list, a temporary measure while the league deliberates over potential punishment under the sport’s personal conduct policy. There was no immediate change Friday to either player’s status with the league.
“We have been monitoring all developments in the matter which remains under review,” the NFL said in a written statement issued through a spokesman.
Baker’s attorney, Bradford Cohen, said on social media that the decision to prosecute Baker is “disgusting.”
Cohen wrote on Instagram: “To charge a young man based on admitted liars testimony is why we need a change in Broward from the old guard. … We will now expose the hypocrisy at the case filing level, the way the office of the state attorney ‘teamed up’ with these convicted felons and offered them to come in and explain why they changed their stories multiple times without fear of prosecution. That they were tipped off that we were reporting the extortion. The case (filer) in this case looked for anyway possible and in disagreement with his colleagues to charge this case.”
A charging document identifies four victims and alleges that Baker robbed them each of money or a watch, or both, worth more than $750. The document says that a firearm “was in the actual possession” of Baker and he committed the robberies “by the use or force, violence, assault or putting (the victims) in fear.”
The prosecutor’s office said it was not filing charges against Dunbar “due to insufficient evidence.”
While they’re on the exempt list, Baker and Dunbar are ineligible to play in any games or practice with their teams. They are paid their salaries and are allowed, under league rules, to attend team meetings, participate in workouts and undergo medical treatment at team facilities. Any suspension eventually imposed under the person conduct policy would be without pay.
Baker, 22, was a first-round draft choice by the Giants in 2019. Dunbar, 28, was traded to the Seahawks in March by Washington’s NFL team. He spent his first five NFL seasons with the franchise.
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