JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Former Jacksonville Jaguars player Sergio Brown has been taken into custody as authorities investigate the death of his mother who was found dead last month near her suburban Chicago home, CNN reported on Wednesday.
Brown was deported from Mexico on Tuesday and taken into custody by US law enforcement officers near San Diego, a source told CNN, based on an arrest warrant issued in Illinois. Police in San Diego are working to transfer Brown from Southern California to the Chicago area, the source said.
MORE: Did missing ex-NFL player Sergio Brown post videos about mother’s death? Police are investigating
Brown, 35, was considered missing following the death of his 73-year-old mother, Myrtle Brown, and posted Instagram videos where he appeared to call reports about her death “fake news.”
“Fake news, fake news, fake news. It has to be the FBI,” the man says in the rambling, expletive-filled video, in which he says he thought his mother “was on vacation” in the Mexican state of Sinaloa.
In another video posted to his Instagram story, he referenced the film “Finding Nemo,” repeating the movie’s famous line, “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming,” the Chicago Tribune reported.
Myrtle Brown’s body was found near a creek behind her home in Maywood, about 12 miles west of Chicago. Relatives had told police they could not locate her or Sergio Brown.
The Cook County medical examiner’s office ruled Myrtle Brown’s death a homicide and said she was injured during an assault.
Jacksonville criminal defense attorney John Phillips represents professional athletes and entertainers across the United States. He does not represent Brown but says Brown’s case is unusual because he’s a former professional athlete worth millions of dollars, collecting an NFL pension, and now accused of murdering his own mother.
“You don’t see celebrities or former accused of crimes like this. When it does, we all look forward and wonder what in the heck happened,” Phillips said.
Last week, Myrtle Brown’s family issued a statement through attorney Christian Conway and called on authorities to advance the investigation into her death, CNN reported.
“We implore law enforcement agencies, particularly the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, to work diligently and thoroughly in pursuit of truth and accountability for Myrtle Jean Simmons-Brown. No family should bear the weight of uncertainty regarding the circumstances of their loved one’s passing,” the family said.
The family also said they had not been in touch with Sergio Brown since his disappearance.
Phillips said whoever is hired to represent Brown will have their hands full.
“You just got to get client control over the press, control over the media to try and preserve his constitutional rights while getting to the bottom of what happened,” Phillips said.
Amid the search for Sergio Brown, neighbors praised Myrtle Brown to CNN affiliate WBBM.
“Myrtle, she was an outstanding woman, and I’m hoping she’s in the right place and she’s with God,” Carlos Cortez, her next-door neighbor, told WBBM. “I never would’ve expected this in a million years.”
Brown’s brother, Nick Brown, memorialized their mother on social media, calling her “strong, caring, diligent, fancy, funny.” He asked anyone who knew his brother’s whereabouts to share information with police.
“I want him to know that I love you and please come home,” Nick Brown wrote.
Sergio Brown played defensive back for Notre Dame before signing with the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2010. He played seven seasons in the NFL as a member of the Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills.
Brown played in 15 games for the Jaguars in 2015.
He last played in the NFL in 2016.
Phillips said he doesn’t remember Brown playing for Jaguars.
“It looks like he had a journeyman career, which is average NFL is three and half years, he lasted. He did okay,” Phillips said.
There were speculations that Brown may have suffered from CTE following years of taking hits in the NFL, But Phillips says that can’t be Brown’s defense until he has been medically examined.
