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Former NBA star arrested for punching son, 10, ‘multiple times’ over dropped book in New York airport

British-born Ben Gordon was prevented by police from a boarding plane at LaGuardia Airport

Graeme Massie
Los Angeles
Wednesday 12 October 2022 13:51 BST
(Getty Images)

Former NBA player Ben Gordon was arrested at a New York airport for allegedly hitting his 10-year-old son “multiple times” over a dropped book, according to court documents.

The British-born retired basketball player was getting a flight from LaGuardia Airport to Chicago on Monday evening when the alleged incident took place, reported The New York Post.

According to court documents obtained by the Post, Gordon faces multiple assault charges and endangering the welfare of a child.

Gordon, 39, was prevented from getting on the plane at around 8.45pm by Port Authority police officers and handcuffed.

The youngster was escorted by a relative and taken to Long Island Jewish Children’s Hospital for evaluation, a law enforcement source told the newspaper.

Gordon, who played for the Chicago Bulls among other teams during his career, was reportedly taken to the Port Authority police station and charges against him are pending.

The newspaper says that two Port Authority officers received minor injuries during the arrest.

It is not the first arrest for Gordon, who was born in London but grew up in Mount Vernon, New York.

He was arrested for alleged assault and robbery in November 2017, just days after getting arrested for driving with a forged license plate. He was also arrested in June 2017 for setting off fire alarms at an apartment building in Los Angeles when there was no sign of a blaze.

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