Nebraska Cornhuskers tight end Arik Gilbert was arrested Tuesday morning after allegedly breaking into a liquor store and stealing over $1,600 worth of merchandise.
ESPN reports Gilbert, who was waiting for the NCAA to determine if he is eligible for the 2023 season, was arrested around 2 a.m. Tuesday and booked in the Lancaster County Jail on a burglary charge, which is a felony in the state of Nebraska.
Footage of Gilbert's arrest circulated social media Tuesday, which showed the 21-year-old athlete breaking into the store, stealing various vape materials, lighters, and other stolen merch totaling $1,672, before he was caught red-handed by law enforcement.
Gilbert, who ESPN ranked as the No. 6 overall recruit in the 2020 class, played his freshman season at Georgia, before transferring to LSU last year. Earlier this year, he arrived in Lincoln, Nebraska with the hopes of suiting up as a Cornhusker this fall.
Local news outlet KLKN-TV spoke with the owner of the store Gilbert burglarized. The owner, Sadeer Ali, described Gilbert as "one of the dumbest thieves" based on his decisions when breaking into the store.
“I looked back at the footage, and I seen him going through the front door, putting his face on the camera,” Ali said. “And then he took off his shirt and put it on his face, and then came in like we didn’t just see his face on the camera. Yeah, probably one of the most dumbest thieves that’s out there.”
Meanwhile, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule has since expressed his disappointment about the situation, saying he's "really sad" for Gilbert.
“Obviously, really disappointed, really sad for him,” Rhule said. “When we took Arik, we knew we had a really good group of people who were going to help him through some of the issues he’s dealing with in his life. I’ve been really proud of the job he’s done this spring and summer. To be honest, during camp he’s had some struggles, he’s been working to overcome them. We have a great group of people here trying to help him and then, obviously, last night happens.”
Check out Rhule's full remarks about Gilbert's arrest below.
