NFL superstar facing strangulation charges, denies allegations ahead of playoffs

New England Patriots star wide receiver Stefon Diggs is facing strangulation and other criminal charges in connection with a dispute with his former private chef.

News of the charges emerged after a court hearing in Dedham, Massachusetts.

Diggs is charged with felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault and battery, but his lawyer David Meier says the 32-year-old “categorically denies these allegations" and that they were both unsubstantiated and uncorroborated.

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“The timing and motivation for making the allegations is crystal clear: they are the direct result of an employee-employer financial dispute that was not resolved to the employee’s satisfaction,” Meier wrote.

In a statement, the Patriots said they were also standing by Diggs.

"We support Stefon," the team said in a statement.

"We will continue to gather information and will cooperate fully with the appropriate authorities and the NFL as necessary. Out of respect for all parties involved, and given that this is an ongoing legal matter, we will have no further comment at this time."

A police narrative in a court filing about the case said a woman came to the Dedham Police Department on December 16 to say that two weeks earlier, while working as a private chef for Diggs, he came into her bedroom and became angry.

The woman told police Diggs “smacked her across the face,” she tried to push him away and then he “tried to choke her using the crook of his elbow around her neck.”

The chef sought payment for a week in November when Diggs was having house guests and she had to go home, Ellis wrote. The woman “left her position” and the home in Dedham but returned on December 9 to retrieve her property.

At that point, she told police, Diggs referred her to his assistant, who told the woman she had to sign a non-disclosure agreement before she would be paid.

She did not sign it, police said.

Diggs, 32, established himself as one of the NFL’s best wide receivers during a run with Minnesota and Buffalo from 2018 to 2023, when he had six consecutive 1000-yard receiving seasons and was selected to the Pro Bowl four times.

After a poor stint in Houston last year, Diggs ended up in New England, signing a three-year, $103 million AUD deal in free agency.

Diggs has proven a reliable target for second-year quarterback Drake Maye and is a big reason why the team has once again clinched the AFC East title.

Off the field, he is currently dating rapper Cardi B and the pair are expecting a child together soon.