National Football League (NFL) player Stefon Diggs is facing strangulation and assault charges.
On Tuesday, editors at TMZ reported that the New England Patriots wide receiver, who welcomed a baby son with music superstar Cardi B last November, has been charged with felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanour assault and battery.
The charges relate to an alleged incident between Diggs and an unnamed woman at his Dedham, Massachusetts home on 2 December.
According to a police report obtained by People, the alleged victim and the sportsman had a disagreement over money.
The woman, who claimed to be a member of Diggs's staff, declined to press charges in her first interview with police officers but later changed her mind and began the process on 23 December.
Diggs, 32, is set to appear in court over the charges on 23 January 2026.
Cardi B is not the alleged victim in the case.
In a statement, Diggs's lawyer, David Meier, denied all of the allegations against his client.
"They are unsubstantiated, uncorroborated, and were never investigated - because they did not occur," he said. "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."
In addition, a spokesperson for the Patriots noted that they would stand by Diggs amid the case.
"Stefon has informed the organisation that he categorically denies the allegations. We support Stefon. We will continue to gather information and will cooperate fully with the appropriate authorities and the NFL as necessary," they added.
On Monday, Cardi took to X to defend her relationship with Diggs after he spent Christmas with his children from previous relationships rather than her and their newborn son.
"Y'all need to calm down," she declared. "Y'all been dragging me for three or four days, and y'all been a little too mean. I can't change s**t. I can't go back in time. I already had a baby."
Cardi, real name Belcalis Almánzar, and Diggs started dating in October 2024.
The Up rapper also shares three children with estranged husband Offset.
