News surfaced this past Friday that Michigan State freshman defensive end Auston Robertson was charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Just hours after the news broke, Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio announced that Robertson had been dismissed from the team following the public release of his charges.
Authorities however spent the majority of the weekend tracking down the 19-year-old native of Fort Wayne, Indiana. The Meridian Township Police Department posted a notice to social media Friday evening urging everyone to be on the lookout for Robertson. However, the department confirmed early on Sunday that Robertson had been arrested and put in police custody.
Auston Robertson was arrested without incident Saturday in Fort Wayne, according to U.S. Marshals in Grand Rapids
— Matt Charboneau (@mattcharboneau) April 24, 2017
Auston Robertson was schedule for an extradition hearing at 9 a.m. today in Allen County Superior Court
— Matt Charboneau (@mattcharboneau) April 24, 2017
Robertson has been accused and charged with forcibly having sex with a woman in her apartment late night back on April 8. If convicted, he can face upwards of 15 years in prison, according to Michigan legislature. Reportedly, his bail bond has been posted at $75K, though he has not been formally arraigned as of Sunday.
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Dantonio released this statement regarding his former 4-star recruit Robertson and his dismissal from the team:
“The criminal sexual conduct charges announced today against Auston Robertson are of the most serious nature. Sexual assault has no place in our community,” head coach Mark Dantonio said in a statement. “While there is an ongoing criminal process, we’re extremely disappointed that Auston put himself in this position. He is no longer a member of our football program.”
When initial details of the incident were first made public, Robertson was immediately suspended from the football program pending the investigation. And once charges were formally made, Michigan State promptly let him go.
Robertson was one of a handful of high-profile recruits from the Class of 2016 for Michigan State, the No. 2 best player according to 247Sports. He appeared in seven games as a freshman this past season, recording three tackles and forcing one fumble.
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Unlike the ongoing sexual assault investigation surrounding the Michigan State football team that offers a lack of clarity and pure speculation, this incident with Robertson was pretty cut-and-dry, making it easy for Dantonio and the Spartans to make a decision that had to be made.
Robertson had multiple issues with the law before ever signing on with MSU. He was involved with two separate incidents during his senior season, including a battery charge in January of 2016, where an investigation delayed his signing with MSU until late March.
