By Canadian Press

Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews facing charge of disorderly conduct

Sep 26, 2019 | 5:06 PM

Toronto Maple Leafs star forward Auston Matthews is facing a charge of disorderly conduct and disruptive behaviour after an incident in his hometown of Scottsdale, Ariz., in May.

A police report obtained from the Scottsdale Police Department says the complaint was filed by a female security guard employed by a local condo building where she says Matthews is a resident. She said she was sitting in her locked car when a group of men, including Matthews, allegedly tried to get inside the car with her on May 26.

She said she confronted the group, who she believed to be intoxicated, and during that interaction Matthews withdrew from the conversation and dropped his pants and grabbed his butt cheeks.

She said that Matthews kept his underwear on.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

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The Maple Leafs released a statement on Tuesday, saying they are aware of a complaint of disturbing the peace against Matthews.

In the statement, the Leafs say “Auston is co-operating fully with the relevant authorities but neither he nor the Club will comment any further out of respect for the process involved.”

A Scottsdale, Ariz., police spokesperson said the department has investigated a disorderly conduct case allegedly involving Matthews. He said Matthews was not arrested and the case has been forwarded to the City of Scottsdale Prosecutor’s Office for review.

The City of Scottsdale’s court website listed a pre-trial conference set for Wednesday morning.

The lawyer for Matthews is listed as Larry Kazan. His website includes names of a number of past high-profile clients including Glen Campbell, Stephon Marbury, David Boston, Jason Kidd, Nikki Sixx, Terrell Suggs, Jason Richardson and Charles Barkley.

Messages left at Kazan’s Phoenix office and with Matthews’s agent weren’t immediately returned on Tuesday.

Matthews signed a five-year, US$58.17-million contract extension with the Leafs back in February that kicked in July 1 with a signing bonus of more than $15 million.

The first pick in the 2016 NHL draft, Matthews has 111 goals and 205 points in 212 career regular-season games. He’s added 10 goals and three assists in 20 playoff outings for Toronto.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2019.

The Canadian Press