A judge has issued a warrant for the arrest of former Minnesota Gopher basketball player Daquein McNeil, who is facing two felony charges after allegedly assaulting his girlfriend last fall.
According to the Star Tribune, Judge Todd Barnette issued a warrant for McNeil’s arrest after the 21-year-old Baltimore native failed to appear for a scheduled hearing last week.
McNeil was arrested in November and charged with third-degree assault and domestic assault by strangulation. If convicted on both charges, McNeil faces up to eight years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000.
A Statement of Probable Cause from when McNeil was arrested said he went to the apartment of his girlfriend of 10 months, repeatedly poured cold water over her and tried to strangle her while saying, “You ruined my life, now I am going to ruin yours.”
McNeil is also accused of damaging the victim’s belongings with a cooking pan and taking items from her apartment, including her computer and her car, the statement alleges.
McNeil didn’t play for the Gophers after his arrest. The university indefinitely suspended him pending a resolution of the case. McNeil didn’t enroll for spring semester so he was automatically dropped from the team roster.
McNeil came to Minnesota in 2013 as a freshman with Gophers coach Richard Pitino, who had recruited him while he was coaching at Florida International.
The Star Tribune reports that McNeil’s whereabouts were unknown and no defense lawyer was listed on his case in court documents.
