ASU football freshman defensive lineman George Lea was arrested Monday on allegations of "multiple felony counts" on Tempe campus, according to SunDevilSource's Chris Karpman.
#BREAKING: ASU freshman DT George Lea suspended indefinitely following arrest on felony counts http://t.co/mTuKG2soRD pic.twitter.com/XGCLTy1Ean
— SunDevilSource.com (@SunDevilSource) June 24, 2015
#BREAKING Lea is alleged to have used an air gun to intimidate a fellow ASU football player. Booked on aggravated assault with deadly weapon
— SunDevilSource.com (@SunDevilSource) June 24, 2015
Air/BB guns are not permitted on the ASU campus, where the incident involving Lea and a teammate is alleged to have occurred.
— SunDevilSource.com (@SunDevilSource) June 24, 2015
Lea has been suspended indefinitely from the football team, Karpman said.
Lea was booked at the Maricopa County Sheriff's office on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, burglary in the first degree and unlawful imprisonment.
According to Karpman, Lea used an airsoft "BB gun" to intimidate one of his ASU football teammates.
Update — 7:48 p.m. on June 23, 2015:
According to Doug Haller of AZCentral, ASU police say Lea walked into a teammate's apartment and pointed a BB airsoft gun, which was wrapped in a towel, at the teammate.
Police said Lea told his teammate, "I heard this is where all the the money is at."
A fellow ASU freshman football player who witnessed the incident told police that Lea was "probably playing around," but that Lea's actions and demeanor remained serious.
End of update
The reported airsoft guns are not permitted on ASU campus, where the event reportedly occurred.
ASU released a statement to SunDevilSource following Lea's arrest.
"Freshman football player George Lea has been indefinitely suspended from the Arizona State University football program after an incident that occurred Monday night on the Tempe campus involving a BB gun. ASU football players are held to high standards and are expected to exercise good discipline and judgment on and off the field. The ASU Police Department and the Dean of Students are investigating the matter and will take appropriate action, as warranted, once all the facts are gathered."
Lea, a 6-foot-2, 272-pound defensive lineman from New Orleans, Louis., was a three-star prospect out of Landry-Walker High School and was entering his first season as a Sun Devil after partaking in spring workouts as an early enrollee.
Lea's arrest is the second such arrest for the ASU football program since spring football began.
Former five-star JUCO linebacker recruit Davon Durant was suspended indefinitely and removed from the football roster after being arrested and charged with three misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and one count of felony aggravated assault.
Durant was expelled from the University, but is currently in the appeals process. He pleaded guilty to one of the counts of misdemeanor disorderly conduct, and has been sentenced to two years supervised probation. There has been no official update from the Sun Devil football program as to Durant's current status is with the team.
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Reach the reporter at fardaya@asu.edu or follow @fardaya15 on Twitter.
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