The NFL's Detroit Lions have released cornerback Terrion Arnold, who is charged over kidnappings

The NFL's Detroit Lions on Monday released cornerback Terrion Arnold, only days after his arrest over allegations that he orchestrated the abduction and beating of three men who prosecutors believe he wrongly suspected of having stolen luxury goods and $100,000 in cash from him.

The team made the announcement on the X social media platform. Arnold had two years left on his four-year rookie contract, worth $14.3 million.

The team did not give a reason, but the announcement came the same day that a Florida judge set Arnold's bail at $1 million. Prosecutors say the three victims, including a man who worked as a driver for Arnold, were robbed while being held at gunpoint in a Tampa apartment in February.

Prosecutors had wanted Arnold held without bond on the eight felony charges he faces. But Chief Circuit Court Judge Christopher Sabella granted bond to him.

The judge did not require Arnold to wear an ankle monitor because it would have prevented him from taking the field for games and training. The judge also said Arnold already has a “paparazzi monitor,” referring to the photographers who have been watching his movements.

“If he shows up on a beach in Tahiti, he’ll be on social media,” Sabella said at the end of the bond hearing in Tampa.

Sabella said that although the charges are serious — each could bring a life sentence if Arnold is convicted — prosecutors are “not there yet” in having a strong case for Arnold’s guilt.

The judge did order Arnold to remain at his home in Tallahassee except for when he’s playing, training and traveling with the Lions. He also said Arnold cannot have any contact with other people tied to the case and must surrender his passport within 48 hours.

Arnold, 23, was a first-round pick in the 2024 draft after playing at the University of Alabama. He had 31 tackles and an interception last season as part of the Lions’ defense.

According to prosecutors, the victims were abducted three days after cash and luxury items, including Rolex watches and Louis Vuitton bags, were reported stolen from Arnold at an Airbnb rental in the Tampa area. Prosecutors allege that six of Arnold’s associates actually carried out the crimes, holding, beating and pistol-whipping the victims, and that Arnold wasn’t there at the time.

None of Arnold’s co-defendants had bond set for them. Two female co-defendants have pleaded guilty and are cooperating with authorities. Their statements tie Arnold, who was not at the apartment, to the crimes, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors argue that Arnold is as responsible for the crimes as his co-defendants because he told his associates that he thought he knew who had stolen from him and said he wanted to confront them, setting events in motion.

“Our office remains committed to seeking justice for the three victims in the case who were beaten, robbed, and held against their will,” said Erin Maloney, a spokesperson for the state attorney’s office.

But Harvey Steinberg, an attorney for Arnold, argued in court Monday that prosecutors are “not even close” to showing that Arnold that he knew or directed what his associates would do.

Denise White, the CEO of EAG Sports Management, which represents Arnold, said before the Lions announced they were releasing Arnold that the judge’s ruling “confirms that there is very little evidence to even suggest any criminal involvement by Mr. Arnold.”

This story was updated to correct that among the charges Arnold faces are four robbery-related counts, not four assault counts.

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Terrion Arnold, a Detroit Lions cornerback, takes his seat before his pretrial detention hearing at the Hillsborough County Courthouse on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Friends and family members of Terrion Arnold, a Detroit Lions cornerback, listen in during his pretrial detention hearing iat the Hillsborough County Courthouse on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Friends and family members of Terrion Arnold, a Detroit Lions cornerback, react, when bond is set for him during his pretrial detention hearing at the Hillsborough County Courthouse on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Hillsborough County Circuit Court Judge Christopher Sabella presides during a pretrial detention hearing for Terrion Arnold, a Detroit Lions cornerback, at the Hillsborough County Courthouse on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Terrion Arnold, a Detroit Lions cornerback, shakes hands with his attorneys R. Timothy Jansen, left, and A.J. Alvarez, during the conclusion of his pretrial detention hearing at the Hillsborough County Courthouse on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (Jefferee Woo/Tampa Bay Times via AP)

Inmates overpowered correctional staff and took over parts of a jail in eastern North Carolina early Monday, but the siege ended hours later when law enforcement officers entered the facility and seized control.

Three guards and 88 inmates were inside the Bertie-Martin Regional Detention Center in Windsor when the takeover began at about 5 a.m., prompting an immediate response from local, state and federal authorities, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said in a statement posted on social media.

By early afternoon, the Bureau of Investigation and the FBI had “cleared the facility,” the state bureau said in a statement. ”All inmates and staff are safe and accounted for, and those who sustained injuries have received treatment.”

Inmates have been transferred to other facilities and the jail will remain secured while the damage is assessed, the Bureau of Investigation said. The 90-bed jail located about 120 miles (190 kilometers) east of Raleigh houses pretrial detainees and short-term inmates for Bertie and Martin counties.

Inmates took two guards captive and the third guard escaped. Negotiations led to the release of the two guards along with 80 inmates, leaving only eight inmates inside, Bertie County Sheriff Tyrone Ruffin said at a news conference.

Ruffin said the two guards who were released were undergoing medical treatment but he had no details about their injuries.

Most of the remaining inmates “complied and exited the facility as soon as entry was made,” said Chad Flowers, a spokesperson for the State Bureau of Investigation.

It wasn’t immediately known whether officers fired any lethal or non-lethal rounds upon entering the jail. In a telephone interview, Flowers said law enforcement officials were in a meeting about the incident and unavailable late Monday afternoon.

Flowers also referred questions about the facility's security to a jail administrator, who did not immediately return a telephone message. Authorities have not addressed why there were three guards overseeing the jail at the time of the takeover.

“The perpetrators must be held accountable for this horrifying action," Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, said on the social platform X. "We also must do everything in our power to ensure this doesn’t happen again — and that includes doing more to recruit, retain, and compensate the county and state officials who are charged with keeping our jails and prisons safe.”

Ruffin did not indicate what caused the takeover.

“Right now we have a lot going on that we're trying to get under control," he said. "I will release that information to the public as soon as I can.”

In this photo provided by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, law enforcement officers wait outside the Bertie-Martin Regional Detention Center on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Windsor, N.C. (North Carolina Bureau State Bureau of Investigation via AP)

In this photo provided by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, law enforcement officers loads inmates for transport Monday, June 29, 2026, at the Bertie-Martin Regional Detention Center in Windsor, N.C. (North Carolina Bureau State Bureau of Investigation via AP)

In this photo provided by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, law enforcement officers load an inmate for transport Monday, June 29, 2026, at the Bertie-Martin Regional Detention Center Windsor, Bertie County, N.C. (North Carolina Bureau State Bureau of Investigation via AP)