Falcons terminate Barkevious Mingo's contract following LB's arrest on child indecency charge

Atlanta Falcons linebacker Barkevious Mingo was arrested Thursday in Arlington, Texas on a charge of "indecency with a child, sexual contact," NFL.com confirmed Saturday, via Arlington Police Department records.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Saturday night that the Falcons have terminated Mingo's contract after gathering further information on the matter. The team later announced the move.

Atlanta released a statement regarding the situation Saturday afternoon:

"Our organization became aware of the allegations involving Barkevious Mingo today and are currently gathering information on this incident. The Falcons take the allegations very seriously and will continue to monitor the situation."

Mingo was released Friday on $25,000 bond, according to Tarrant County bond records. No further details from the case were available at this time.

In a statement obtained by NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, Mingo's attorney Lukas Garcia called the charges against his client "completely baseless."

"The allegations out of Tarrant County against my client are completely baseless. Barkevious Mingo is innocent," the statetment read. "At this stage, our side has very limited information. What we do know is these allegations are from over two years ago and are completely untrue. Mr. Mingo is the victim of a false claim, and we believe this is motivated by money or some other ulterior motive. We are confident when the truth comes to light, my client will be fully exonerated."

The 30-year-old NFL veteran signed a one-year contract with the Falcons in March. He spent the 2020 season with the Bears, his sixth team in the past six seasons. Mingo was originally a 2013 first-round pick by the Browns.

The original article can be found here.