Kansas City Chiefs Ban Tyreek Hill From Team Activities After Secretly Recorded Audio Surfaces

Chiefs player Tyreek Hill has been barred from team activities after a video leaked of Hill discussing his son’s broken arm with his fiancée Crystal Espinal.

This Thursday, KCTV aired a recorded conversation between Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill and his fiancée, arguing over how their 3-year-old son hurt his arm. KCTV reports the two were discussing the logistics of how the boy hurt his arm in relation to what they were going to tell police. The recording is believed to have been recorded earlier in March when the couple was walking through Dubai’s international airport. KCTV5 was told the tape was an “insurance policy” for Espinal.

In the 11-minute recording, Espinal says their son said Hill is the one responsible for the alleged abuse. “A 3-year-old is not going to lie about what happened to his arm,” the woman says. “He is terrified of you. “ Hill replies, “You need to be terrified of me, too.” After the first round of the NFL draft concluded Thursday night, Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach said in a statement that Hill is barred from all team activities. “We are going to continue to gather information, and we will make the right decision,” Veach said. Espinal sent it to at least one friend because she didn’t feel she could keep a recording on her phone.

Local authorities have yet to release the details of the investigation. The Kansas City Star reports the boy suffered a broken arm. In the video, Hill denies hitting the child, and the woman accuses Hill of whipping the boy with a belt as punishment. But Hill responds saying Espinal has also used a belt on their son. Espinal also appears to suggest she helped Hill evade criminal charges. “I rode for you against that detective and the C.P.S. people,” she said.  On Wednesday, Johnson County (Kan.) District Attorney Steve Howe announced he would not charge Hill or Espinal but said he believed a crime had occurred, The Washington Post reports.

On Thursday, police were called to Hill’s home at around 8:30 pm following the recording’s leak. Hill currently has a “no contact” order with his 3-year-old son.