LOS ANGELES — Former NFL running back Derrick Ward is accused of committing several robberies in the Los Angeles area, authorities said.
Ward, 43, an eight-year veteran who played for the New York Giants during the 2007 season when they won Super Bowl XLII, was arrested shortly after 12 p.m. PST on Monday in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Ward was booked into a Van Nuys jail around 6:30 p.m. PST on Monday, according to jail records. Los Angeles Police Department Officer Annie Ward told the Times that Ward was booked on robbery charges but did not elaborate. She added there were no other details to release about what led to Ward’s arrest.
Former NFL running back Derrick Ward, who won a Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants, was arrested Monday and accused of robbing multiple Southern California businesses, officials say. https://t.co/R0albnPeDC
— NBC News (@NBCNews) December 20, 2023
Ward allegedly robbed at least five businesses, including gas stations, NBC News reported. He was not suspected of using a firearm during the alleged thefts, according to the news outlet.
Ward was selected in the seventh round of the 2004 NFL draft by the Giants, according to Pro-Football-Reference.com. He played five seasons with the Giants, then spent one season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and two with the Houston Texans before retiring in 2011, The Athletic reported.
Ward, who grew up in Southern California, played high school football for Valley View High School in Moreno Valley, the Times reported. He played college football at Fresno State and then Ottawa University in Kansas, according to the newspaper.
Jail records indicate that Ward was being held on $250,000 bail, KABC-TV reported.
