Former NFL running back Le’Veon Bell was arrested Sunday in Canton, Ohio, according to TMZ, with the case tied to unpaid child support.
Bell, 34, was reportedly taken into custody on a warrant from Michigan. Though he lives in California, he was in Canton for an autograph signing before the arrest. TMZ said Bell was scheduled to appear at Belden Village Mall for a meet-and-greet event.
Bell’s attorney, Thomas Shaffer, told TMZ that the arrest was connected to “child support payments, or an alleged lack thereof.” Shaffer also said Bell has been “struggling to make support payments.”
TMZ later released Bell’s mugshot photo on Monday.
Bell last appeared on an NFL field in 2021. He entered the league in 2013 with the Steelers and spent five seasons in Pittsburgh, where he became one of the top running backs in the game and earned four All-Pro selections. After refusing to sign the franchise tag and holding out of the 2018 season, Bell later had stints with the Jets, Chiefs, Ravens and Buccaneers, with his final time on Tampa Bay’s roster coming in the 2021 season.
In 2025, an Ohio jury found Bell liable for $25 million in a sexual abuse case brought by a female relative over events that occurred when she was a minor. His brother, La’Vonte, a co-defendant, was ordered to pay $11 million.
Per Fox 8, neither brother responded to Franklin County Court of Common Pleas summonses, which led to a default judgment against them. Neither was criminally charged in the case.
TMZ reported that Bell owes more than $50,000 in child support. The case originated in Michigan, where the child lives. Bell’s jail record indicates he is being held on behalf of “another agency," per Fox 8.
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